Fiery and Forbidden
by sweetprincess16
Summary: Zuko, banished and living as a traveler, meets and falls for a dismissed fire nation soldier with a haunted past. But for his own safety, he must live under a flase identity. Can he protect her and lie to her without tearing his heart apart? ZukoXoc
1. Two Travelers and One Strange Girl

Fiery and Forbidden (a Zuko love story): 1

"I can't believe we're on the streets begging for food" Zuko muttered to his Uncle Iroh.

"Zuko, we are no longer royalty. We are now humble peasants who depend on the kindness of others. There is no shame in that." Iroh whispered back.

"Then why do I feel so humiliated?" Zuko said, lowering his head.

It was a beutiful fall day in the city of Denang. The sun was shining through the leaves, partially shading the two travelers. A hat lay before them with a few copper pieces inside it. After a full day, the two travelers barely had enough to buy a loaf of bread. Just then, a grungy man walked by.

"So ya needs some monay, huh? I'm willin' ta pay a full gold piece fer a good performance." he said, holding out the coin.

"Like I said, humiliating." Zuko muttered.

"Now Zuko, that is no way to treat a charitable man." Iroh stood and belted out a full chorus of "the girl from Ba Sing Se" as Zuko lowered his head even further.

The man, on the other hand, laughed "how about a little dancing to go along with that?" he said taking out his swords. Zuko started bracing himself for a fight, clutching at his own swords while not wanting to cause a scene. The man slashed one of his swords along the ground which made Iroh jump. The man continued the movement, laughing meniacly, as Iroh continued singing in a somewhat nervous tone.

"...As I went to war,

I came to love

the girl from Ba Sing Se!"

Just as Zuko was about to get up, he heard a voice.

"Wait! Stop!"

A girl was running toward them, coming to a screeching halt two feet away from the man and Iroh. Apparently, she was just as surprised by her outburst as any of the three men were.

Nonetheless, she said "please, you musn't mistreat the poor. Put away your swords...please."

"Oh yeah?" said the man "and who's gonna make me?"

Surprisingly, the girl bowed low "please, i only ask that you put away your sword and carry on your way. there is no need for this kind of--!"

Just then, the man struck the girl in the side with the hilt of one of his swords, making her fall to the ground cringing. Zuko jumped to his feet and removed his sword. The man eyed the boy menacingly until a soft voice came from the ground.

"please" the girl was now on her knees, face in the dirt, in a bowing position. "please, i dont mean to cause trouble. Just leave...please."

The man looked indignantly at the girl for a second, but then turned on his heel and started walking away. "Too bad, i guess ya dirty beggars just lost a gold piece."

Zuko watched him leave, and sat back down once he was out of sight. Iroh bent to the girl.

"you shouldn't move. That blow was in a sensitive area, who knows what damage that man did."

"It's okay. I-I feel fine." the girl rose back onto her knees in a sitting position, a thin trickle of blood leaking from her mouth.

The boys' eyes widened. "You need to go see a doctor! You could have internal bleeding!" Iroh cried.

"N-No, I really am fine." she said, wiping the blood away, "But that man offered you a gold piece, didn't he? I'm sorry, I just kind of acted without thinking. Here-"

She handed a small pouch to Iroh.

"That probably doesn't have the same amount as a gold piece, but there ought to be a couple of silver coins in there. Im sorry...again" the girl rose to her feet and started walking off.

Zuko looked at the back of the girl. She had dark hair, like everyone else, but her skin was lighter than the other Earth Kingdom citizens. Also, he didn't get a good look at her eyes, but he could swear that they were black--a sure sign of fire nation blood. She wore earth kingdom clothes though. (use your imagination). A strange feature was her hair. It was black and gleaming, but it was cut very short and untidy. (think of something like Faye's hair from cowboy bebop, but black and with a poorer cut). Nonetheless, Zuko noticed, she was beutiful.

"Did that girl just give us all her money?" Iroh asked suddenly. Zuko tore his attention away from the girl (who was now about fifty yards away) and shrugged to his uncle.

"That girl should be more concerned about herself" Iroh continued "but we can't give the money back now. She's too far away and she didn't give us any of her information."

"...Not even her name" Zuko whispered to himself. He shook his head and slouched further. "I shouldn't trouble myself with such nonsense."


	2. To the Rescue

Fiery and Forbidden (a Zuko love story): 2

Sorry I didn't give anymore information about the girl. I'm trying to steer the story away from the other kinds of fan fiction and make more of a novelesque story. I think you should learn more about it in this chapter.

It was late at night. Despite the girl's donation, Zuko and Iroh still did not have enough money to rent a room for the night. So the two travelers were forced, like always, to build camp in the forest. Despite the cool night and the chirping cicadas, Zuko could not fall asleep. Against his better judgment, he couldn't stop thinking about the girl. "Was that all the money that the girl had", "why did she help two strangers", and most of all "what is her name" kept running through his head. Finally, he got up and started walking.

"she's just a girl. So why can't I stop thinking about her? Is she really from the fire nation? But then why is she here?" Suddenly he looked up. He was back at the street where he had first met the girl. "and why did I end up here?"

Before he had time to elaborate on that thought, he heard a shriek. He turned around and saw the girl, not far away, running. Behind her were three large men, following after her. Zuko didn't need another hint. He took off in the same direction, but the men were fast. He followed them through the winding streets, but lost them in the darkness of the city. Eventually, he found the girl and the three men in an alley. One of the men was holding the girl's left hand against the wall, and another was doing the same with her right. The remaining one spoke up.

"so yer a hero, are ya?" it was the man from the previous day. "let's see how much of a hero ya are now, ya fire nation bitch." He stepped forward and started lowering his pants.

Tears were streaming down the girl's eyes

"please...no." she whispered as the men holding her knocked the feet from under her so that she was on her knees.

"jus' relax. It'll be over soo—"

Just then the man was knocked to the side and Zuko appeared.

"you..." the girl whispered.

But the man had recovered and knocked Zuko to the ground. One of the men holding the girl jumped on Zuko and started pounding him. Zuko just managed to knock the man off him and jump to his feet before the first man had a chance to punch him. The remaining man knocked the girl against the wall, putting her in a mild daze, before starting in on the fight. Meanwhile, Zuko and the other men had removed their swords. The flash of blade against blade only helped to further the girl's dazed state so that she was helpless, lying on the ground.

She only saw more flashing and three men run off, leaving only the boy from before. The boy was breathing heavily, and he has covered in some shining liquid. Zuko turned and looked at the girl, who was now slowly coming to her senses. She was still lying on the ground, apparently paralyzed, but he could tell that it was only temporary. He sat down and waited. Even though it was nighttime, he caught some features of the girl that he had missed earlier. Her face was smooth, and it glowed in the moonlight. Although she was lying on the ground, her body curved in all the right places. Most of all, she had some sort of dog collar around her neck, but he could not tell what was on it. The girl could barely move, but she concentrated hard. She had to start moving.

Finally, she slowly moved her arm, then her leg, and then she sat up. At that cue, Zuko stood and grabbed her arm. Without a word, he lifted the girl to her feet and started leading her away from the alley. She struggled to maintain control of her legs as she stumbled behind the strange boy.

Eventually, Zuko led the girl into the forest to the small campfire where Iroh was still sleeping. He put her down at one side of the campfire while he went to the other side. The two sat in silence for what seemed like hours, but Zuko could finally tell what was on her collar. In large, bold letters, it said DISMISSED FIRE NATION SOLDIER and it had the emblem of the fire nation as a pendant. Zuko lowered his eyes. Now he knew what was so extraordinary about this girl.

"If you don't dress that wound, it won't get better" she whispered, referring to the gash in Zuko's shoulder. She stood and walked to where he was seated, taking out some gauze and a needle from an inner pocket in her dress.

"Let me see" she said, reaching to pull down his shirt. Zuko slapped her hand away.

"I'm fine"

"No, you're not." She said, reaching for his shirt again, only to have her hand waved away. "If you don't let me take care of it, it won't heal, and it'll turn into a scar just like—" she cut herself off, seemingly embarrassed. Zuko touched his face where the scar was.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said anything. But unless you want to bleed to death, you need to let me help you." She said.

Zuko looked down. Indeed, the wound in his shoulder was still pulsating blood. And she was right, he couldn't sow it up himself. He shrugged—and then winced at the pain from his shoulder. The girl took the needle and pulled it through his skin.

"That hurts" Zuko winced again. The girl didn't answer, she only busied herself in her task. They sat in silence for a while, the girl working fast and oddly skillful and Zuko sitting awkwardly close. All the while, the questions that had kept him awake that earlier that evening again rose into his mind.

"So what's your name?"

When the girl didn't answer, Zuko thought about repeating himself, until she finally spoke up.

"...silence is the safest course for any man to adopt who distrusts himself." She replied

"And what do you mean by that?"

"You're better off not knowing." She said. Zuko winced as she drew the needle around a tendon in his shoulder.

"how do you figure?" he asked.

The girl smiled shrewdly, "I'm just not a very nice person."

There was silence for a minute until Zuko spoke up "you know, I haven't heard you talk about yourself at all"

The girl pulled the string taunt and cut it. "I just told you, silence in the safest course—"

"I mean, you haven't done anything for yourself. You fixed my injury, but you refused to even acknowledge the wound you got yesterday. This could mean that you're just tough, after all you were a fire nation soldier, weren't you?" Zuko looked at the girl. She nodded slowly and involuntarily raised her hand to her collar.

Zuko continued, "but if you were just tough, you could have taken care of the guys that attacked you. You knew that the whole time didn't you?" The girl lowered her eyes and nodded.

"But you didn't. I don't get why, but you didn't."

The girl started wrapping the gauze around Zuko's shoulder. "...It's because I'm from the fire nation."

"So you think you deserve this?" Zuko asked.

"...you don't understand" she whispered. The girl secured the gauze and pulled her hand away, but Zuko caught it.

"Your right. I don't understand, and I'm not going to pretend that I understand, but at least tell me your name so that I can thank you" he pleaded.

At first the girl looked startled, then scared, then defeated.

"It's Chiye" she whispered as she stood. "And yours?"

"Zu—I mean, Lee" Zuko had almost forgotten his identity change.

"Perhaps I'll see you again, Lee." Chiye smiled and walked back into the forest.

"You're not really going to let her go, are you?" a voice rose from the 'sleeping' figure of Iroh. "She doesn't have anyplace to go."

Zuko turned, surprised, to his uncle "how can you tell?"

Iroh sat up and looked at Zuko. "She didn't walk back into town, she went in the opposite direction. She is a traveler, like us. Plus, that necklace isn't fire nation issued. She made it herself. The fire nation never dismisses anyone. So that means—"

"That means that she is on the run." Zuko finished, realizing that Chiye is far from safe.


	3. An Approaching Storm

Fiery and Forbidden (a Zuko love story): 3

Hello again! It took me a while to come up with more story. Writers block is a bitch!! Watevs, this is something that I finally came up with. Cya!

Zuko awoke to the sound of birds chirping in the sky. He had dreamed of Chiye the night before, but it was not a good dream.

He sat up and rubbed the sleep out of his eyes. There was no use in thinking about Chiye now, she was gone. Today, Zuko had to go with his Uncle to the next town. He had made too much of a scene with the three men, and it was likely that the town wouldn't welcome the travelers back.

With only a few minutes of packing, Iroh and Zuko started on their journey. The next town was Ninjong, famous for their cherry blossoms that were currently in bloom. If the three men from Denang tried to follow him, Zuko could easily hide in the crowds of tourists.

It was just a coincidence that the town was in the same direction that Chiye had left the night before.

As the two walked, Zuko tried to keep his mind on the dust in the road and not on...other matters. Iroh could guess his nephew's dilemma and allowed the silence to continue for a short time, but curiosity got the best of him.

"What happened last night, Zuko?" he asked.

"...nothing" Zuko muttered.

"But, nephew, you returned from the town with a girl and a gash in your arm. Something must have happened." Iroh reasoned.

"What does it matter?" Zuko snapped. "We're never going to see her again anyway."

Iroh pouted "It's just that I thought of something that I didn't before. When I was in the fire nation army, I heard rumors about a young girl."

Zuko looked up. "What did you hear?" he asked a little too eagerly.

Iroh smiled at his nephew's interest. "Of course, one would hear rumors about a young girl enlisted in the army, but she was more than just a strange exception. She became a legend. I didn't exactly know the girl, however, because she was in someone else's squad."

Zuko was engrossed in Iroh's words "how was she a legend?"

"Well, at the age of twelve, she had already participated in more battles than most soldiers do in their lifetime. She grew up under her father, one of the greatest fire nation generals of the time. Combined with her natural fire bending talents, she was groomed into the finest soldier ever. She became known as the Red Geisha. Red for her fire bending and the destruction she left, and geisha for her beauty and her style of fighting. I don't know much, but I know that it involved special fans that are like blades. The last thing I remember is that she ran away from the army, but I don't know why."

Zuko turned his gaze back to the ground, trying to take it all in. An ideal fire nation soldier is trained to be cold and mindless, but Chiye was kind and selfless. She was exactly the opposite of what a legendary soldier should be. So could it be true?

The travelers walked in silence until they finally came upon the city. Like the previous town, Ninjong was huge and surrounded by forests. However, this city had cherry blossoms on almost every corner; which meant that Zuko was dragged all over town by his uncle.

"I don't see why we have to see every stupid tree. They all look the same" Zuko muttered.

"Although they seem similar, every tree is different. This one for instance," Iroh said, pointing to a particularly large cherry blossom "has more branches than the last three that we've seen."

Zuko sighed and started walking away. At the very least, he could get away from the huge crowds gaping at the trees. As he was walking, two young boys ran past him.

"Hurry up, we're gonna miss it." One of them said.

"Shutup! It's not like they're going to kill a fire nation soldier right away." The other said.

"But I heard it was a cute girl. Maybe they'll go easy on her" the first pouted before they both turned the corner.

Zuko stopped in his tracks. "Could it be..." he whispered to himself. He took off in hot pursuit, hoping that the girl that the boys were talking about wasn't Chiye.


	4. Something Wicked this Way Comes

Fiery and Forbidden (a Zuko love story): 4

Zuko followed the two small boys through the streets of the city until he finally reached the town square. He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that there were no gallows or firing squads. However, a familiar sight caught his eye. Chiye was walking through the streets, eyes lowered. All around her, the crowds turned and jeered at her.

"_Why is she just ignoring it_?" Zuko wondered. Just then, a huge, red object went flying through the air and hit Chiye squarely on the cheek. It was a rotten tomato. She stumbled back a few steps, apparently caught off-guard. Then she raised her hand to her face, wiped the red mush off, and continued walking. The crowd roared as rotten food flew through the air, stopping only when it landed on the young girl.

But she kept walking, trying to ignore the angry crowds and flying foods. Chiye kept her eyes lowered and her steps steady. Suddenly, she was thrown forward by a violent assault in the square of her back. Lying on her face, she knew that the mob had turned violent. Now the harmless food would be replaced by stones. She knew that she may not survive...

Suddenly, someone grabbed her arm and pulled her up. Even before looking, she recognized Lee's hand as he pulled her through the crowds. The people offered little resistance, possibly glad to see the fire nation soldier leaving the village and heading into the woods. After walking through the cherry blossoms, eventually finding a place without people, Zuko turned around.

"Why didn't you fight back?" he asked severely, grabbing her shoulders.

"W-What?" she stammered, surprised.

"Why didn't you fight back?" he said, his voice gaining volume. "Why didn't you run away? If you were a soldier, you could have at least run! Do you want to die?"

He stopped, realizing that he had begun to yell. Chiye had tears streaming down her eyes, but Zuko couldn't tell if they had already been there or not.

"I'm sorry" he said, lowering his eyes "I know it's none of my business."

Chiye smiled slowly "...no, you're just trying to help."

Zuko looked up. Chiye's face was glistening from her tears, and her smile was enchanting. Combined with the falling leaves from the cherry blossoms, she was stunning. Zuko lowered his eyes again to keep from staring.

"This sort of thing happens everywhere I go" she said. "Some times are worse than others."

"But why do you put up with it?" Zuko asked.

"Well, I left the fire nation, didn't I? I'm sick of fighting."

"Fighting in self defense isn't the same as fighting in the fire nation" Zuko interjected.

Chiye shook her head "it's all the same. One way or another, someone gets hurt. At least I know that I can take a hit."

Zuko looked up "Take a hit? Do you know what kind of 'hit' you're going to take tomorrow?" he frowned. "One of these days, it's not just going to be a beating. One of these days, you're going to die or—" Zuko stopped, remembering what happened with the three men in Denang.

Chiye seemed to read his mind. "...You did save me the other day, but you don't think that that was the first time, do you?"

Zuko raised his eyebrows in surprise "you don't mean..."

Chiye nodded. An awkward silence came between the two, Chiye not wanting to say more and Zuko not knowing what to say. Finally, Zuko spoke.

"you're not safe."

Chiye smiled "that's a little obvious, isn't it? But what choice do I have?"

Zuko met Chiye's gaze "you can come with us, my uncle and me."

This time, Chiye looked surprised "W-what?"

"You can come with us" Zuko repeated "if you stop traveling on your own, less people will attack you."

Chiye smiled confusedly "thank you, but I couldn't take advantage of your kindness again."

Zuko waved the phrase "don't worry about it. I wouldn't have invited you if I didn't want you to come."

"But if anyone does attack me...again...then you might get hurt." Chiye honestly looked concerned at Zuko.

He smirked "no one has beaten me yet, and I saved you twice already."

Chiye's concerned face slowly changed to a smile "you know what, you're right! It might be fun! Oh, but will your uncle be mad?"

Zuko smiled also "he won't care. Let's go."

For the first time, Zuko grabbed Chiye by the hand and led her through the streets. A new union was formed between them.


	5. True Story Revealed

Fiery and Forbidden (a Zuko love story): 5

Hey guys! Im back! Im trying to update the story once a week, but its kinda hard when you don't know what to write about. I have a lot of ideas for later, but right now im kinda pulling things out of my ass...oh well lol

It took a while for the teens to find Iroh. He had wandered off to look at yet another cherry blossom. When Iroh noticed his nephew, who was still holding Chiye's hand, his eyes grew wide with surprise.

Zuko stopped in front of his uncle. The prince waited for his uncle to say something, but Iroh just seemed to be trying to make sense of the two teens. His eyes searched from Zuko, to Chiye, to their entwined hands. When Zuko noticed, he quickly dropped Chiye's hand and looked away, blushing. Nonetheless, he said quietly "Uncle, Chiye is going to be traveling with us from now on."

Iroh's surprise increased in his face, every wrinkle on his forehead making an appearance as his brows rose. But they disappeared quickly as his expression changed to severity. He said sternly to Zuko "can we talk about this in private?"

Zuko looked at Chiye. She nodded "go ahead, I'll be fine for five minutes."

Iroh and Zuko walked away from the crowd, towards the forest. After a few minutes of silence, Iroh stopped Zuko. Instead of the dark expression from before, the old man's face was soft and full of concern "Prince Zuko, you are being very kind to this girl. To be honest, this is the first time that I've seen you take an interest in someone else. But, Zuko, does she know about your past? Or even that you're from the fire nation?"

Zuko lowered his gaze and folded his arms "...no."

Iroh shook his head. Foolish nephew. "You cannot hide it from her for long."

Zuko looked up with indignance "of course I can. She's from the fire nation and she hasn't recognized me yet."

Iroh thought for a minute, stroking his beard "She must have been in the army while the news was spreading of your banishment. I can't think of any other reason why she wouldn't recognize you."

"See? She thinks that a fire nation soldier gave me my scar. As long as we keep up with the story, she won't suspect anything." He said triumphantly with a small half-smile.

"Okay, so we're going to keep lying to her." Iroh looked concerned, "That means that we have different names and we can't firebend. Do you really think that we can protect her without fire?"

Zuko hadn't thought of that. Nonetheless, he said "I'm sure."

"Fine then, she can come with us." Iroh still looked concerned, but he continued "In that case, we need to reach Ba Sing Se as fast as possible. The faster we travel, the less people we will meet on the way."

Zuko's face rose in a smile. He respectfully unfolded his arms and bowed low "Thank you, Uncle, I'll be careful." He rose and started to walk away. "Wait, why Ba Sing Se?"

Iroh smiled as well "There are so many refugees there, they will not notice three more."

The two walked back towards the cherry blossom viewers. There, Chiye was standing, staring at the beautiful pink trees. A breeze blew past her, making her hair wave slightly. Zuko turned his gaze downward. At the same time, he couldn't help feeling slightly smug. It's not everyday that a girl like Chiye is depending on you to protect her.

Chiye turned her gaze to Zuko and Iroh as she heard them approach. Her eyes questioned Zuko, and he nodded.

"You can come" he said, smiling.

"--Only if you tell us one thing" Iroh interjected. Zuko turned to his uncle with a startled look on his face.

But Chiye only smiled "that's understandable, I suppose. What do you need to know?"

"We need to know what happened to you with the fire nation." Iroh said.

Slowly, Chiye's smile dissolved. Her gaze lowered, and her face showed distress. However, her hands were balled into fists by her sides--she knew that she couldn't say no.

Chiye looked up pleadingly "please, could we at least leave the town before we talk about that?"

Iroh nodded. "gladly. In fact, we were just leaving."

The three walked away from the town. They started traveling through the forest, but still Chiye wasn't talking. She only continued to walk, staring at the dirt in the road and occasionally clenching her hands into fists. Both Iroh and Zuko decided not to press her for information. Yet, the three walked farther and farther from the town, and Chiye was completely silent. Finally, her hands relaxed as she sighed.

"Let's sit down." She almost whispered, walking towards a patch of grass. She sat down, holding her knees close to her chest. Iroh uneasily sat on a small rock, and Zuko merely leaned against a tree with his arms crossed. Chiye clutched at her knees and sighed again.

"I was born from a famous fire nation general. He was well respected because of his skill and battle planning. So I guess it's understandable that he should have wanted a son to carry on his legacy. However, he had me and my mother died shortly after I was born. He probably would have remarried, but he was pretty old by this time. Instead, he raised me in place of the son that he really wanted. From the moment I started walking, he was training me. I remember that it was...very painful" Chiye buried her face in her knees, she didn't need to say more on the subject. Her trembling form showed the pain that she was remembering.

When she raised her head again, she continued "When I was about eight years old, my training ended. My father used his influence to enlist me in the army. I'm sure that he had to pull a lot of strings. But by the time I was ten, I had built a pretty good reputation for myself."

She opened her knees, so that she was sitting Indian-style and reached into her dress. She pulled out two fans. "I took what I learned from my father and the other people that I met from the army to make my own style of fighting. I called it hang wu dao (flowing dance), and I use these fans to fight." she opened the fans. The edge of them was made of very thin metal. The sharp edge could easily cut through solid rock. "They're like blades, and they amplify my fire bending. Using these, hang wu dao relies on both speed and connection. In a way, it looks like dancing. That's why I received the name 'Red Geisha'. However, it's very dangerous, and it can kill many people at a time. I never objected to that though. I was...ruthless." Chiye put the fans back into her dress and looked down. She sadly shook her head.

"One day, a little over a year ago, we were taking over an earth kingdom village and..." suddenly, Chiye stopped. Zuko noticed tears forming in her eyes. Yet she willed them not to fall. She quickly wiped them away.

Chiye breathed heavily "...I just got tired of it all, and I left. That's when I cut my hair—" Chiye looked up at Zuko and Iroh, remembering that they were from the earth kingdom. "When a person from the fire nation cuts their hair, it means that they have abandoned their country."

Iroh stroked his beard and Zuko ran a hand through his hair. Both were shaggy by this time, after having hacked off their own hair not long ago. Zuko stuttered "oh, I, uh, didn't know that."

Chiye smiled "but I didn't feel like that was enough. I had hurt so many people, and it just wasn't enough for only me to know that what I had done was wrong. That's when I made this collar." She touched it and lowered her head "the fire nation has hurt many people. If the victims or their families want to take it out on me, I'll let them." She looked up again to the incredulous faces of Zuko and Iroh. "I know it sounds unreasonable" she said "but it's all that I can do."

No one said anything for a while. It was hard for the boys to process the information. This beautiful girl was the killer of millions? It almost seemed impossible.

Finally, Iroh spoke, stroking his beard thoughtfully "thank you for telling us. I know that it must have been very hard for you."

Chiye looked up. "it's okay. It had to be done." She picked herself up from off the ground and smiled. "Now, you want to tell me where you two came from?"

Iroh and Zuko exchanged glances. "we-uh-we came from—um" Iroh stuttered, his eyes looking pleadingly to Zuko for an answer as he uneasily stood up.

"—the circus...?" Zuko finished. Iroh glowered at Zuko. He shrugged as if to say 'what else was I supposed to do?'

To their relief, Chiye laughed. Zuko noted how much prettier she looked when she smiled.

Chiye walked a little ahead and, still giggling slightly, looked to the sky. Then she stretched her arms up over her head. "that's alright. You don't have to tell me the truth if you don't want to. I understand. I'm just glad that you guys are still so accepting after I told you about myself."

Zuko felt a stab of guilt. He realized that Chiye had just offered her entire past to them without question. But Zuko had immediately lied to her. He looked down. He felt like a jerk.

Chiye looked over her shoulder at him "so where are we going now?"

"To Ba Sing Se" Iroh said. "we should be able to reach it very soon."

"Ba Sing Se? the Earth Kingdom capital?" Chiye looked up again thoughtfully and touched her chin with her forefinger. "how ironic. The place that the fire nation has never been able to conquer, and I'm going there as a refugee."

"Tell me about it..." Iroh muttered.

"What was that?"

"Uh—nothing! I said let's get going." Iroh said quickly, walking quickly ahead.

Chiye smiled again "okay, let's go! To Ba Sing Se!" She cheered and started half running-half skipping down the road. Zuko smiled inwardly at her enthusiasm as he walked behind her. He may even have been laughing on the inside. But he still wasn't ready to really laugh; he had suffered too long to actually do that. Still though, something was happening to him. And it was because of a girl who was now prancing down a dirt road.

That was probably the funniest fact of all.


	6. Another Suitor?

**hey guys!! ok, for i think the first time, im making an author's note. i really appreciate all of yall that have been reading my story, but it would help a little to know that i have some support! so please review!!!!! **

**much appreciated :D**

Fiery and Forbidden (a Zuko love story): 6

As night approached, the three travelers were forced to set up camp in the forest, once again. By the heat of the campfire, Zuko and Iroh unrolled their sleeping cots and were about to lie down, but then they noticed Chiye, just sitting on the ground watching them.

"Aren't you going to sleep? You must be tired after today." Iroh said, fluffing his pillow.

Chiye nodded. "well of course! I was just going to wait until you two were sleeping to put the fire out."

Zuko sat up from his cot "the fire will be fine. It's not going to spread, so you don't have to worry about it. Just go to sleep."

Chiye shook her head, smiling politely, and waved her hand "Its okay. I wouldn't be able to sleep if I had to worry about the fire. Don't worry about me."

Zuko stood and walked over the fire. He raised a foot to kick dirt on the fire to put it out, but then he noticed something "Chiye, don't you have something to sleep on?"

Chiye shrugged "Well, kind of. The fire nation taught us to sleep without cots, so instead—" she stood and walked a little ways into the forest. She returned a moment later with a bed of moss. She put it on the floor and lied down on her stomach facing the boys. She cradled her head in her hands and smiled sweetly "See? It's a lot softer than a cot anyway."

Zuko smiled slightly and nodded. Then he kicked dirt onto the fire and all three slept.

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In the morning, Zuko woke to see a bright blue sky free from any clouds. He sat up sheepishly and rubbed his eyes. Apparently, Iroh and Chiye had awakened only a little earlier because both were lazily trying to stand. However, Zuko noticed something about Chiye that he hadn't the night before. Her face was a bright red, but only in small patches. Blotchy—that's the word for it. Her eyes were also just a little puffy. Indeed, Chiye was still beautiful, but it was almost as if she had been crying…

Zuko shook his head. She had been asleep the whole night. This was probably just the way that she looked in the morning. 'Are girls supposed to look different when they wake up?' Zuko thought to himself as he packed away his cot.

When everyone was ready to leave, the three travelers set off in the direction of Tundai, the city known for their many temples.

"I'm so excited! I've always wanted to see the Tundai temples!" Chiye was almost skipping down the road.

"Tch…they're just a bunch of fancy buildings." Zuko kept walking with his head lowered.

"But you're missing the point!" Chiye turned and raised a finger "temples are centers where a person goes to calm the mind and cleanse the body. The people of Tundai must be so enlightened." Chiye turned back around. "It's just over that hill, I think."

She started running to the top, and when she got there she stopped dead in her tracks. Zuko and Iroh walked from behind her, but she didn't turn around. Zuko looked at Chiye's face and noticed the absence of her smile. Instead, a mixture of pain and anger showed, and her hands were balled into fists. Zuko followed her gaze to the town.

An enormous fire nation flag was waving over the entire city. Although not much of the town could be seen from their viewpoint, the wall surrounding the town and the few visible temples were paved in metal.

Chiye slowly turned around "let's go."

Iroh grabbed her arm "We cannot avoid going into the town. It would take days to completely avoid it and we are out of food."

Chiye yanked her arm out of his grasp, tears starting to stream down her eyes "But we can't go in there! Don't you see what they did?"

Iroh nodded and folded his arms "Of course they are doing wrong, but we must go in there."

Chiye angrily shook her head and stomped her foot once "NO. We can't go in there! I refuse!"

Zuko put a hand on her shoulder and turned her so that he was looking squarely into her eyes. Calmly, he said "I know you're angry, but it sounds like we don't have a choice. It will only take a couple of hours to travel through the town. It will be okay." He gave a reassuring smile.

Chiye looked at him, tears still streaming down her face. Her breathing slowed, and her face changed from panic to defeat, although her hands were still balled. Begrudgingly, turning her face away and said "fine. Let's go."

They walked slowly towards the town. Chiye and Zuko both turned their heads downward. However, Zuko was in his usual state of coldness while Chiye was still angry at the prospect of entering the town. When they were near the front gates, Iroh stopped the group.

"Chiye, this may be hard, but you must do something to ensure our safety."

Chiye looked up resentfully and folded her arms "I'm already going into the town, what else do I have to do?"

"You must remove your collar." Iroh said "you know as well as I do, it would attract unwanted attention."

Chiye uncharacteristically scowled, not looking at Iroh. Then she tensed, looking back at Iroh and opening her mouth as if she was going to say something. But she closed her mouth, reached up to her collar, removed it (more like tore it off), and put it into a fold in her dress. "Fine. But I'm putting it back on once we're out of there."

Iroh nodded and smiled. When Chiye turned around to walk towards the gates, Iroh signaled to Zuko to hide his face as much as possible. Both men lowered their straw hats over their faces. Despite their slight precaution, it was surprising that the three travelers passed through the front gates with such ease, although they were guarded by fire nation soldiers. The soldiers probably thought that Chiye had captured two earth kingdom rebels.

As they walked through the town, it was hard to ignore the amount of tension. There were earth kingdom people walking around, but they were obviously afraid. For good reason; on every corner a fire nation soldier was patrolling. All three travelers kept their heads lowered and avoided eye contact with any passerbys. They followed the winding streets until they found a busy intersection inhabited by peddlers selling food. Lucky for our three travelers, earth kingdom citizens were still running the market.

Even Chiye started to lighten up. "Do you two know how to tell if a cantaloupe is ripe?" She said, fingering a particularly large one.

Iroh and Zuko exchanged glances and shrugged. They had never needed to buy their own food before. After all, they had been royalty.

Chiye turned back to her cantaloupe and started tapping it. Suddenly a voice arose from amongst the shoppers.

"Chiye? Is that you?"

Chiye froze over her cantaloupe. Her eyes widened, and she felt a cold sweat. She couldn't move—she couldn't breathe. She recognized the voice, and the hand when it rested on her shoulder.

She stiffly straightened up and turned around. She forced a smile "Hong, nice to see you."

Zuko and Iroh had already escaped and were crouching behind one of the stalls. It was too risky to be near anyone who recognized Chiye—he may recognize Zuko and Iroh as well. Still, Zuko couldn't help but look. Chiye faced a man, about nineteen years old in fire nation armor. He was obviously strong, and Zuko could almost sense his talent in combat. Even more disturbing, the man called Hong was handsome. His face was clear of flaws and his hair was well kept. From the way he was talking to Chiye, he was also charismatic. He had none of the flaws that Zuko had. The prince started feeling a twisting sensation welling up in the pit of his stomach. Jealousy, maybe? Zuko refused to admit it.

Hong smiled (his smile was also perfect, to Zuko's distress) "how's the army treating you these days?"

"oh, uh, fine." Chiye said with the same forced smile. "how about you?"

Hong sighed and raised a hand to the back of his neck "not that great. I have to stay in this town and stop prospective uprisings while you get to have all the fun on the front lines. Count yourself lucky."

Chiye faked a laugh "That's great. Well, it was nice seeing you."

She started to walk away, keeping the smile plastered on her face, but Hong grabbed her hand "C'mon, I haven't seen you since training camp and you're just going to leave like that? At least let me buy you a cup of tea."

Chiye gingerly pulled her hand away "Hong, you know I really appreciate it, but I just can't right now."

But Hong persisted "Oh come on. I know the best tea shop in town, you'll love it!" he grabbed her hand again and practically dragged her into the crowds. Zuko stood up.

"What are you doing?" Iroh asked him.

"What do you think? I'm following them." Zuko started walking and Iroh stood and followed close behind him.

"We cannot trail them, it's too dangerous!" Iroh said.

"Fine" Zuko snapped without turning around "then you stay behind. I'm following them."

Of course, Iroh continued to walk behind Zuko. It was hard to keep up with Hong and Chiye, but every time that Zuko thought he had lost them, he heard Chiye resisting with phrases like "please, Hong, I've got to go" and "seriously, I'll catch you later."

Finally, they arrived at a small tea shop not too far from the exiting gate. Chiye and Hong entered and sat at a table near the door. That meant that Iroh refused to let Zuko go into the shop. Instead, they waited around the corner of the store. Zuko couldn't hear the conversation between Hong and Chiye, but he could at least watch them.

Hong signaled for a waiter to bring the tea, and then he turned back to Chiye to talk. On the plus side, Hong was doing most of the talking. However, as they talked more and more, Chiye was loosening up. Little by little, her fake smile and fake laugh were replaced by real ones. By the time the tea was cold, she was laughing as if she had known Hong for years. The twisting in Zuko's stomach got worse.

Finally, the two rose from their table and walked out of the restaurant. Zuko and Iroh hid behind the corner of the shop. They heard Chiye speaking "Look, Hong, I'd love to go to the fire day's festival with you, but I really have to—uh—report to my next post. You understand."

Hong laughed "okay, fine, but you owe me next time." As the soldier's footsteps became quieter, Zuko walked back around the corner to the front of the tea shop and saw Chiye waving goodbye to Hong.

"Glad you had a good time" Zuko said bitterly, folding his arms.

Chiye gasped and turned around "Lee! You scared me." She said holding a hand to her chest.

"Today is just full of surprises, isn't it? I show up, your old boyfriend shows up—full of surprises." He turned his head coldly.

Chiye looked at him confusedly and a little hurt "Lee, first of all it's not like that. You saw me trying to get out of it, didn't you? And what do you mean by boyfriend? We went to training camp together when we were in the fire nation, and that's it. Besides, what do you care anyway, even if he was my boyfriend?"

Zuko harrumphed, still not looking straight at Chiye "you're right, I don't care."

A moment of silence passed between them, but then Chiye softened and smiled a little "look, Lee. I had to play along. As far as he knew, I am still in the fire nation. I'm not sure what he would do if he discovered that I left. And…" she clasped her hands innocently behind her "he's a fire nation soldier. I could never have feelings for him."

"No one asked." He said, feeling a little better on the inside. But then realization set in. If she hated fire nation soldiers, how would she feel about a fire nation prince? Chiye must never learn about his true identity. A different kind of twisting started in his stomach. Dread? Guilt? Grief? Maybe all of the above.

Just then, Iroh appeared out of nowhere. "what have I missed?" he asked.

"Where have you been?" Zuko demanded, knocked slightly off-balance from the shock of his uncle's sudden appearance.

"Well, we were right next to a tea shop. And they just happen to be having a sale on jasmine tea." Iroh beamed, one hand resting on his stomach. Chiye stifled a giggle.

"Anyway, it is time that we left the city" Iroh continued briskly.

"But what about the market?" Chiye said, her giggle disintegrating into a disappointed tone.

Iroh scratched the back of his neck, seemingly embarrassed "Well…there may have been a sale, but jasmine tea is still expensive. So…we don't quite have enough money for food."

"We don't have enough for FOOD?!" Zuko roared. He was so angry that he would have…would have made fire fall from the sky if Chiye hadn't been there! But just thinking about it didn't make his anger any better.

"Instead of eating, you spent all of our money on a stupid cup of tea?! What were you thinking? Now what are we going to eat?"

Chiye put a hand on his shoulder "don't worry about it."

Zuko turned on her "and what are you going to do about it? Go ask Hong for money?"

Chiye looked a little hurt, but she recovered and brushed a lock of hair out of her eyes "no, I just know how to get a little money."

She took her fans out from her dress and grabbed Iroh's hat from his head. She walked to the middle of a street intersection, and put the hat down a few feet in front of her. Then, she started dancing. It was amazing, the way that she moved. It was like she was swaying and turning and bending all at once, the whole time creating strange illusions with her fans. Slowly, a crowd assimilated in a ring around her, mostly comprised of fire nation citizens (the tea shop was in a fire nation sector of the city) and street venders. Best of all, they were not shouting and jeering, but laughing and clapping.

Zuko felt happy for Chiye—she was being appreciated for who she was, not hated for what she had been. After all, she was just a normal girl…a normal, beautiful girl. The way that she moved made her raven hair whip around behind her, and all the physical activity made her glisten with sweat. He could barely tear his eyes away from her, and by the look of the crowds (the crowds that were becoming more and more masculine), he wasn't the only one hypnotized.

By sunset, Iroh's hat was filled to the brim with not just copper and silver pieces, but even some gold coins as well. Apparently, fire nation soldiers would pay any price for even just eye contact with Chiye. When she finally came to a halt, an audible moan came from the audience.

In a loud voice, Chiye said "Sorry folks, that's enough for today! Thanks for watching, and please make any contributions at this time! Much appreciated!" She then flashed her enchanting smile into the audience. More gold pieces went flying into the hat.


	7. A Steamy Night

**Hey kids!! Guess what, I'm making another author's note :) Sorry kids, but my reviews quadroupled (which means i got four reviews on the last chapter :-P ) So here we go again**

**Review peeps! it really helps me keep the story going when i know that there are people out there enjoying the story. and i need it more than ever; im having writer's block :( so talk to me people! thanks **

Fiery and Forbidden (a Zuko love story): 7

"I think we finally have enough money to sleep inside, for once" Chiye cheered as the three travelers walked through the streets of Tundai. She still carried the hat full of coins, but she was almost struggling under its weight.

"Maybe we should save our money for food and travel expenses." Iroh said, holding out his arms to take the hat from Chiye.

Instead, she moved the hat away from his reach "Oh c'mon! I had to work hard to get this money, and I want to treat you boys to a four star hotel—or at least three star." Chiye grinned.

The boys grinned back, and Zuko stole the money away from the unsuspecting Chiye. As they started a vicious game of keep-away, Iroh stroked his beard "I suppose we will still have enough."

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"But one room is not enough. We need to have two rooms" Iroh argued, his hands pounding the desk in frustration.

The owner of the small inn shook his head "You do not have enough for two rooms. Only one! Either take it or come back with more money!"

The three had gone back into the earth kingdom sector of the city to find a hotel. After looking for a long time, they finally settled on a humble inn. However, it was still as expensive as a five star hotel because it was one of the few lodgings that sported a hot spring.

Iroh walked back to the waiting teenagers. "I guess we are out of luck. We only have enough money for one room."

Zuko looked down. He had been looking forward to staying someplace nice too, after all. Chiye, on the other hand, shrugged "So? What's the problem?"

Iroh looked at her, and was suddenly at a loss for words. He waved his arms erratically, searching for something to say "Well…um…don't you care?"

Chiye laughed "Of course not! All we're doing is sleeping, anyway, no big deal."

Iroh shrugged "Okay, I guess we're going to have one room then."

The owner of the inn led the three to their room. It wasn't very big, but it had two large beds side by side. The owner gave them robes and pointed them in the direction of the hot spring before leaving.

Chiye threw herself on one of the beds "This is great! I don't even remember the last time I've actually slept in a bed!"

Zuko sat on the edge of the other bed. "how long have you been sleeping outside?"

Chiye touched her chin in thought, and then said "About, I dunno, five years?"

She stood up again "I think I'm going to go to that hot spring."

She grabbed a robe and left Iroh and Zuko back at the room. They were silent for a minute, but then Zuko shook his head.

"It's like sleeping outside is no big deal to her."

Iroh stroked his beard, thinking hard "That's a lie. It bothers her as much as it bothers us."

Zuko looked up at his uncle "what do you mean?"

"Well, she's the daughter of a prominent fire nation general, right? A man of that caliber is paid very much by the fire lord. She was probably treated similar to us when she was young."

Zuko didn't say anything for a while. He had to admit, he had never thought about her status as a general's daughter. Then again, did it really matter? "…I guess I'm going to go to the hot springs, too."

"Alright" Iroh said "I think I'll just stay here and sleep. I simply cannot pass up this bed!"

Zuko left Iroh and followed the signs into the men's dressing room. It was completely empty. "…guess I'll be alone." He said to himself. Just then the impact of what he had said hit him. He wasn't just going to be bathing alone. He was going to eat alone, breathe alone, and eventually die alone. He was with Chiye and Iroh all day, every day. But at the same time, he was alone. Iroh didn't understand the loneliness that banishment brought Zuko, and Chiye…well, Chiye didn't even know who he really was.

All of his clothes were off now, except for a towel. He started walking towards the spring. Even if his banishment ended, he would be alone. Iroh and Chiye couldn't help him. They didn't understand him. And they never would. That's why he could never live without lonliness…

He entered the hot spring. The air was thick with steam, and green shrubbery hung down into the clear water. It was completely empty except for one man who was facing the other direction. It was kind of awkward bathing with another guy, but the water was so alluring it was hard to resist. He started walking towards the water. As the steam started clearing, Zuko could make out more of the man. He kind of had long hair for a guy, and his shoulders were small. Just then the guy stood up, either about to leave or walk to another part of the hot spring. He had a small waist to go with his small shoulders, but it looked like his hips were a little wider. It was kind of like he had an hourglass figure…oh god…

Just to make it worse, Chiye sensed his presence and turned around. For a moment—a long, painful, embarrassing moment—the two froze. Then Chiye looked down at herself, as if realizing that she was completely naked. In an instant, her face turned a bright red, she crossed her arms in front of her chest, and she lowered herself back into the water and turned around. At the same time, Zuko turned around, unsure of what to do and glad that he at least had a towel.

"I'm really sorry" he said, a little frantically "I thought this was the men's bath."

"But, I thought this was the women's bath!" Chiye called back, still clutching her chest beneath the water.

Just then, Zuko noticed the two doors attached to the inn. One had a blue MEN'S sign over it, and the other had a red WOMEN'S sign over it. Zuko knocked himself on the head. It was a mixed bath.

"Bad news" he called to her "It's a mixed bath."

Chiye didn't say anything. The situation was embarrassing enough without her saying anything to make it worse. Zuko had the same idea.

Finally, he said "look, I guess I'll just go."

Chiye dropped her arms and looked over her shoulder "What? No, Lee, I'll go. You haven't even gotten in the water."

Zuko shook his head "No, its really okay. I can come back later."

Chiye thought for a minute, absentmindedly twisting a lock of hair around her finger "You know, it is a mixed bath."

Zuko turned partially around "Yeah, so?"

"Well, as long as you're okay with it, we could…well…you know…bathe…together"

Zuko's eyes widened in surprise. Had he heard her right? I mean, BATHE together? It wasn't possible, was it? He turned completely around, and took a step forward. She wasn't saying anything yet. He slowly started walking towards the water. But Chiye had already turned back around so that she was facing the opposite direction. Zuko got to the edge of the water, and Chiye looked away to let Zuko get in. And he got in quickly.

For a few moments, silence passed between the two as they tried to find someplace else to let their gaze rest. Finally, Chiye said "y'know, we've been traveling together for a while now, and I don't know very much about you and your uncle. I mean, I guess you could still go with that circus story if you want, but what happened to you two?"

Zuko looked down. It's not like he could just tell her the truth. He was in too deep to tell her that, but he didn't want to go with the stupid circus story. Finally, he said "We've just been traveling for a long time."

Chiye looked at him, her hand rising to her chest over her heart "will you two always travel?"

Zuko shook his head "I hope not."

Chiye gazed downward and smiled dryly "Me too. Traveling is too hard…on all of us."

Zuko looked at her now "what about you? How long have you been traveling?"

"…All my life, I guess. Since I was a little child, I've gone from training camp to training camp and from war to war. I met Hong when I was about thirteen at one of those training camps."

Zuko crossed his arms and looked away. He was sick of hearing about Hong. He was just a low-class soldier anyway.

Chiye smiled and laughed to herself, but she continued "For a long time, I thought that I would have to travel alone forever. Loneliness is really all that I had ever known. But…then I met you and your uncle…" She stared off into the empty space for a minute, then said "y'know, you're really lucky to have someone to travel with. It gets really painful when there's no one to talk to."

Zuko stared thoughtfully at her. Chiye may not know who he really was, but maybe she understood him more than he thought. If he felt alone when he was with people, how did she feel when there was no one? He started feeling pretty stupid. All of his problems seemed so inconsequential compared to her problems.

Zuko shook his head. He was getting lost in his thoughts so easily nowadays. "Ya. I know."

Chiye sighed and slipped further into the water so that only half of her face remained dry. It really was refreshing, but she wished that Lee would open up a little more. Of course, he and his uncle were kind enough to take her to Ba Sing Se anyway; if they didn't want to tell her something, that was fair enough. But still…

She looked up and raised a hand to the sky. She didn't expect to be able to reach the stars, but could she ever reach out to Lee one day? Maybe it was just as hopeless, maybe it was only a dream, but maybe…

She looked at her hand "I'm starting to shrivel up." She smiled. "I'm going to go to bed." She said to Zuko.

Zuko stared at her for a minute, not knowing what she was waiting for. Then it hit him "Oh, sorry!" he blushed again and turned back around.

Chiye wanted to laugh at how easily he became flustered. But instead she warned him "I didn't bring a towel with me, so don't turn around until I get back into the dressing room."

"I wasn't going to!" he snapped. Zuko heard the water splash as she rose out of the water, and he heard her wet footsteps for the first few feet, but then he wasn't sure if she made it into the dressing room or not. He waited for another few seconds, then cautiously peeked over his shoulder.

"Crap!" he said to himself, rapidly looking the other way. She hadn't made it in yet. He felt his face burn again, trying to be respectable enough to forget what he saw. Damn hot springs. He rose from the water and grabbed his towel. He really was tired. Just as he was about to head to the dressing room, something caught his eye. It was a shrub at the far end of the hot spring. It was like the others, but a single red flower was growing from the leafy greenery. It was strange, because the air around the brush should be hot enough to kill anything like a flower. Yet, in the harshest conditions, a beautiful flower was able to survive…

He walked to the shrub and picked the flower. It was so beautiful and delicate that he felt it necessary to hold it with both of his hands. He carried it to the dressing room and laid it carefully on a seat cushion. After he dressed, he carefully picked it up again and carried it to the room.

It took a minute for his eyes to adjust to the darkness, but he could just make out two sleeping figures. Zuko placed the flower on the dresser, next to Chiye. She looked so peaceful when she slept. But then he noticed two wet streaks flowing from her closed eyes. Was she crying? Chiye squirmed and whimpered just a little. Zuko placed his hand on her shoulder, and she calmed down. What happens in her dreams? Could it really be enough to make her behave so? Was there really anything that he could do to help? There may never be any solution to her problems, and there probably weren't any to his problems either. They were so alike, but he felt so far away from her…

He lowered his face to hers and lightly kissed her wet cheek. They will never really be close. All he could hope for is for Chiye to stay with him, at least until they reach Ba Sing Se. It would be foolish to hope for more. But at least tonight, she was the flower that grew from nothingness. She depended on Zuko and Zuko alone for protection. And that was enough to make him completely happy.


	8. Breakfast with Chiye

**hey peeps! IMPORTANT AUTHORS NOTE!!!!!!**

**okay, ya'll know how much i like your reveiwing, right? well, ever since my first review, i've replied to every single one that i've gotten. I'm starting to get the feeling that my replies are getting lost in cyberspace...am i right, or is it in my head?? seriously, i want to know. if yall took the time to write me, the least i can do is write back okay, on with the story!!!**

Fiery and Forbidden (a Zuko love story): 8

The avatar…the bane of Zuko's existence. The avatar may not be the cause of his problems, but he was the solution. All Zuko needed were a few chains around the air bender's neck…

Zuko awoke not to the blue sky that he had awakened to so many times before, but a plain, beige ceiling. His memories came flooding back…the money…the inn…the hot spring…the flower…

Zuko sprang up. The flower! He looked over at the other bed. Good, Chiye was still asleep. Zuko stood up and grabbed the flower from the nightstand. What was he thinking? He didn't have time for giving girls flowers. The steam must have gotten to his head.

Just then he heard Chiye stirring from her slumber. She sat up, rubbing the sleep from her eyes "ugh, what time is it?"

Zuko spun around and shrugged, keeping the flower behind his back. Still, he had to admit, a small part of him wanted to grab her and confess everything, finally ending with his giving her the flower in apology. He quietly firebended the flower, so that it became just a pile of ash.

Chiye sheepishly stood up and sighed "I guess we should leave."

Iroh rolled over and continued snoring.

Chiye looked at Zuko "do you think you can wake your uncle?"

Zuko half-smiled "I don't think an earth bender on a rampage could wake him up."

Chiye rubbed her eyes again "okay, wait here while I get ready."

Zuko wasn't really sure why he was waiting, but he guessed that it was because they were going to check out. He quickly changed his clothes and pulled himself together before Chiye returned from the bathroom.

She emerged again, looking refreshed and a lot better than when she woke up. "okay, let's go." She said, grabbing Zuko's sleeve and heading to the door. Zuko was taken completely by surprise, but he went along anyway. Instead of going to the check-out counter of the inn, Chiye led him out the front door and down a couple of streets.

"Wh-where are we going?" Zuko asked, half stumbling since Chiye was still pulling on his sleeve.

Chiye turned around, walking backwards, and smiled "We're going to breakfast, silly, I'm hungry."

Zuko raised his eyes in surprise. He certainly hadn't expected to be going to out to eat with Chiye. Of course, he wasn't complaining.

Chiye continued talking "I saw this restaurant when we were near the tea shop. It had a sign out front advertising breakfast specials; plus, it was a pretty cute place."

Zuko's heart raised and then dropped. That was in the fire nation sector of the city. How was he going to avoid being seen? He was really glad that he had brought his straw hat. At least he could sort of conceal his face.

"Here it is!" Chiye pointed to a small restaurant. It was a little too cutesy for Zuko, but he couldn't ignore that he was really hungry. They went in, and Zuko led Chiye to the farthest corner of the shop. She was a little confused, but it wasn't exactly a big deal. A waitress handed them both menus.

"Ohhh, everything looks so good!" Chiye said, staring at the long list of foods. Zuko looked too. Indeed, almost everything on the menu seemed delicious. It was almost too hard to choose.

As Zuko contemplated, Chiye looked up "I've got a good idea." She smiled "why don't we get everything?"

Zuko looked up "are you serious?"

Chiye shrugged, half impersonating Zuko, "well, just the stuff on the specials list. I think we have enough money. Besides, if we run out of cash, we can make your uncle dance for change."

Zuko choked on his tea. Despite himself, he started laughing between coughs. Chiye was completely taken by surprise. She had never heard Zuko laugh before.

Zuko must have been just as surprised. When he noticed how hard he was laughing, he struggled to control himself. "Ahem, uh, whatever you say."

They placed their orders and made light conversation. When the food came, they had a hard time deciding which one of them would get what special. Then, Zuko heard a very familiar voice…

"Chiye, didn't expect to see you here!" Hong walked over to their table.

Zuko saw Chiye tense up. Nonetheless, she said "Hong! Um, ya, I saw this place when we were having tea together yesterday."

"Oh, I get it! You came here looking for me!" Hong laughed at his own joke. Chiye politely laughed as well.

So far, Zuko was feeling like the third wheel. The very uncomfortable, very mad at Hong for interrupting a conversation third wheel.

"Oh, Hong, this is Lee. We've been traveling together for about a week. Lee, this is Hong." Chiye mouthed a quick 'sorry' to Zuko for not introducing him sooner.

Zuko nodded in acknowledgment, not daring to turn his head for fear that Hong may recognize his scar.

Hong, on the other hand, showed no modesty in his greeting. "Lee, huh? Didn't see you yesterday. You know, if you leave Chiye all by her lonesome, someone's going to come along and take her." Hong winked at Chiye, who raised an eyebrow as if to say 'get over yourself'.

Zuko slouched lower and said, without turning his head, "I'll keep that in mind."

Hong turned back to Chiye "hey, can I talk to you for a minute?"

Chiye hesitated and looked at Zuko. He only shrugged. It's not like she needs my permission, he thought. Chiye guiltily got up and followed Hong outside. Despite himself, he was picking up on parts of their conversation.

"Why…with him?...army…your talent…with…" "Hong…thank you, but…can't…"

What were they talking about? If it was anything like it sounded, it wasn't good. Zuko had to get closer. Hong and Chiye were talking at the front of the building. If he could sneak beside the window, he should be able to hear everything.

Zuko stood, and walked quickly to the window. He must have looked a little crazy to the few people in the restaurant, but he could handle it. He crouched under the windowsill. Hong's voice came ringing through the wall.

"The fire nation isn't going to give you a leave of absence for much longer. If you request it now, they may post you here with me. C'mon, it would be like the old days when we goofed off between training practices. It'll be fun."

Chiye's voice—"First of all, I was dedicated. You were the one goofing off, and you goofed off during training. Besides, those days are over. I may not know how much longer I get to be absent from the army, but I'm going to travel for the duration."

Hong's voice now, sounding slightly resentful—"okay, then, what about that Lee guy. How can you stand him? He doesn't say a word, it's like he doesn't care. Why are you traveling with _him_?"

Chiye's voice again, sounding quieter—"look, I know he seems kind of…reserved, but he means well and he's really kind--"

"—So? What about me? Drop that Lee guy and stay here. I know the town seems kind of quiet, but every once in a while, an earth bender rebellion happens. We could stop them together, it'll be great!"

Chiye's voice, no longer quiet, now with an air of resentment—"Look, Hong, I really do appreciate it, but I just can't. We may have had a lot of fun back at training, but like I said, those days are over. It was nice seeing you. Maybe I'll see you again someday. Goodbye."

Chiye walked back into the restaurant, and was surprised to see Zuko crouching under the window.

"Umm…" She said "What are you doing?"

Zuko, trying to be nonchalant, shrugged "sitting."

Chiye smiled and sat down next to him "you were eavesdropping weren't you?"

Zuko blushed wildly and looked up "No! No I wasn't! I was just…uhh."

Chiye laughed a little at how flustered he was getting "It's okay, I'm not mad." She looked at the table and noticed that they had barely eaten. "C'mon, lets get the food wrapped up and go for a walk."

The food really had cost a lot. Chiye would probably have to dance again once they got to the next town. Neither Zuko nor Chiye cared right then, though. After all, they had enough food to keep the three of them happy for a few days.

The two started walking through the streets, both having to carry a few bags of food in the process. Still, the day was clear and bright and the streets were full of life.

Chiye looked up at the clouds "Look, Lee, don't let Hong bother you. He can act like a jerk sometimes, but he's kind…at least to his own people…"

Zuko looked at Chiye. A dark shadow crossed her face. It was obvious, it tore her up on the inside to know that a friend didn't share her ideals. Not many fire nation citizens agreed with human equality.

Zuko looked down "I understand." Being the son of the fire nation lord, he was raised to believe that everyone else was beneath him. Sometimes, even now, it was hard for him to be humble. "I know you already told Hong no, but are you even going to think about staying here? You said yourself traveling is too hard."

Chiye laughed "are you kidding? I wouldn't stay here even if I was paid! Don't you see how all of the earth kingdom people are treated? It's completely insane. I just wish that other people would see that…"

Zuko nodded "Maybe they will someday…"

They arrived back at the inn, only to find Iroh still snoozing despite the fact that it was near midday. Luckily, the smell of leftover food seemed to have an 'awakening' effect.

"This is delicious!" Iroh said, munching on platypus-bear eggs.

Chiye smiled "I'm glad. They were having a _sale_ on some of the food. Oh, but I forgot, _food is still expensive. I guess we don't have enough for traveling expenses_."

Iroh looked up "I'm not quite following."

"Long story short, no more money. Sorry! Guess you'll have to find a way to get some cash. You can borrow my fans if you feel like dancing." Chiye flashed another smile.

Iroh was, of course, too thick to be insulted by her sarcasm. Instead, he just laughed and kept eating.

"So where are we going next?" Chiye asked, grabbing a hash brown.

"We have to camp out tonight, but we should reach Nakeron by tomorrow." Iroh said between bites.

"Aww, the rainy city?" Chiye threw herself on the bed. "I was just getting used to all the nice weather!"

"It'll be fine." Zuko said "but we should get going. I'd like to get there before next week."

"Until tomorrow, then" Chiye got up and patted the bed sadly. "I'll miss the beds…"


	9. Flashbacks

**AN IMPORTANT!!! im going to be gone for about a month, and im going to eastern europe. you know what that means? it means no more story for that time!!! sorry guys!! i promise, the second i get back, ill upload like 2 or 3 chapters!!**

Fiery and Forbidden (a Zuko love story): 9

The travelers had left Tundai soon after checking out of the inn. At the back gate, the three had to show their passports, but it was relatively easy to exit the city. They had been walking all day, without break. By nightfall, the travelers were absolutely exhausted.

"Dear Agni" Chiye, sweating and panting slightly, collapsed onto a mossy rock "I think I'm going to fall apart. Do you two do this everyday?"

"Yes, but you never get used to it." Iroh lowered himself onto another nearby rock, muttering some hackneyed phrase about being too old.

Even Zuko was worn out. After all, they must have walked thirty five miles at least. Just to make it worse, dark clouds had formed as if to tease them with the promise of cool rain. Zuko unrolled his sleeping cot. It was going to be a long, restful night. Iroh followed suit, and Chiye simply didn't move from her mossy boulder. The three didn't even bother to make a campfire, no one was going to stay up long enough to enjoy it.

"Goodnight, boys." Chiye called softly from her rock.

Two soft whispers of "Good night." and "'Night." Came back from the sleeping cots.

The avatar…that Aang kid…where was he?...Why couldn't Zuko find him?...he needed to find the avatar…at any cost…for the sake of his honor…

Zuko opened his eyes. Still nighttime? Where was the sun? He sat up. There was a cool breeze blowing softly through the trees, which made a ghostly sound. The moon was bright, however, and it helped to demystify the night. Iroh was still snoring loudly next to him, and Chiye was…

Where was Chiye? Her boulder was unoccupied, and she was nowhere to be seen. The breeze blew again, making that sound. Wait, it wasn't the same sound as before. It was a little less eerie and a little more like…like crying…

Zuko got up. If the breeze was blowing from the north, that's where he needed to go. He tried to follow the sounds of weeping, but it was muffled.

Finally, a clearing! In the middle, Chiye was crouching. She was doubled over, one arm wrapped around her waist and the other covering her face. Her shoulders shook violently as sob after sob vibrated through her. She didn't even notice Zuko quietly approaching.

He came up behind her. What was she going through? How many times had this happened before? Morning memories of Chiye with puffy eyes and blotchy cheeks came flooding back. Does this happen every night? Zuko sat down next to her. Chiye still didn't notice. She was too far into her own world. He slowly placed a hand on her shoulder.

Chiye jumped and abruptly looked up. For a minute, she was too startled to react. Then, without warning, Chiye threw her arms around Zuko. At first, he had no idea how to react. His arms were out, but he didn't know where to put them. But then a soft voice came from Chiye.

"Please…jus--just hold me for a while" She was barely audible, and she started weeping again as soon as she stopped speaking. Zuko softened, and slowly wrapped his arms around Chiye's shoulders. She was in pain, but at the same time, Zuko never wanted this moment to stop.

Chiye continued crying for hours--sometimes violently, holding on tightly to Zuko, and sometimes softly, merely allowing herself to be held. When she finally stopped, she didn't move for a while. It was too easy to just lie back in Zuko's arms, and stay there.

She soon pulled away, though, blushing wildly "I-I'm really sorry. I didn't mean for you to see that."

Zuko shook his head. "It's okay. I think you needed someone to see."

Chiye looked down. Zuko was probably right. She had been hiding her secret for a long time. "I guess…I guess you want to know why I was…" She blushed lightly again, and Zuko nodded just slightly.

"Well…I guess it comes back from the day that I left the fire nation. I told you earlier that we were invading a village and then I left, but I wasn't telling the whole truth. That day…well, I was...de-occupying the houses. But that's just a euphemism for…for killing any inhabitants. I had done it so many times before, though. I burned whole families at a time without hesitation. But that day…" Tears were forming again around her eyes as she took a minute to gather herself. "That day, I was going through the streets, turning everyone into ash. But then I found this tiny house…it was hardly more than a shack…but it was inhabited by this huge family. It was just like every other house before it, though, nothing special. I went inside, and the whole family was there. They all backed against the wall, the parents trying to protect their children…but one of them got away from his mother…and…and he walked straight up to me…he couldn't have been older than five…and…he just looked up at me…and smiled. Of course he didn't understand what was going on. He didn't understand that I was there to kill him. I mean, I may as well be there for a visit as far as he knew. I knew I was supposed to just kill him…but…I just couldn't." Tears streamed down Chiye's face. She could barely continue "This little boy gave me his smile, unconditionally. I just couldn't bear to completely throw that away. So I ran. I ran out the door, and as fast and as far as I could. When I finally stopped, I was in the middle of the woods…alone."

Zuko looked down. It was too hard to look Chiye in the face. Every time he saw her eyes, he felt her pain. It was too much to bear.

She continued "Ever since then, I've had dreams…nightmares, really…of the fire nation, the boy, but most of all, myself. I know it sounds stupid, but the most frightening dreams happen when I see my old self…through the eyes of that young boy."

Zuko couldn't speak. He had a huge lump in his throat, like he had just dry-swallowed a pill. He could feel his heart pounding in his skull. What was he supposed to say to that? 'I'm sorry, I hope you feel better'?

Chiye stood up, eyes facing the ground and fists clenched. "But there's nothing that I can do about it now. Every night, I go to sleep and have those dreams, but there's nothing that can make it any better." She unclenched her fists and reached into her dress, retrieving her collar. "You do what you can to make it through the day. This collar is my retribution." She fastened it around her neck and clenched her fists again. "The dreams never stop, but I can at least fool myself into thinking that I'm suffering…like the people who I hurt."

Zuko was still crouching on the ground, but he looked up and, struggling through the lump in his throat, whispered "can't you accept that you can never repay all of the people who got hurt?"

Chiye smiled but kept her gaze away from Zuko's eyes "I know. For a while, I thought that if one of the victims were to kill me, it would be enough. That's why I never fought back…I was waiting to die." She shook her head and wrapped her arms around her waist "but every time that I got hurt, or beaten, or—" she breathed once heavily "—or raped, I would always wake up the next day, completely unharmed." She walked about two feet to the left, then to the right, and then back as she started pacing. "It just wasn't fair!" She threw her arms up in exasperation "instead of getting it all over with, I had to live with myself everyday. I had to remember every person that I had killed. I had to bear the brunt of the fire nation's ignorance!"

Chiye stopped pacing long enough to look straight up at the sky, throw her fists into the air, and scream "It just isn't fair!"

Zuko paused to give Chiye time to calm down. After a few minutes, Chiye lowered her arms back to her sides, but her face remained in the same rueful grimace as she looked at the dirt.

"…I'm glad that you didn't die" Zuko said, standing but keeping his gaze lowered. Chiye looked up at him in surprise. "If you had died…" he tried hard not to show his blush "we would've…" he could feel the blood pounding in his skull "…we would have never met."

Chiye's eyes widened and her hands softened. Zuko raised his gaze to meet Chiye's eyes. Minutes passed, seeming both like years and seconds as the two teenagers exchanged a silent conversation. And yet, neither individual understood the other.

Finally, a smile broke out on Chiye's face. It wasn't an ironic or painful smile either, it was genuine. She turned around so that her back was to Zuko and she clasped her hands behind her "you and your uncle are so kind to me, even though I don't deserve it. I'm very lucky." She turned her face and looked over her shoulder "…and now, I'm also glad that I didn't die."

Zuko smiled with her. In less than a half hour, the sadness that had clung to the air around them dissolved and left…and left what? It felt like more than camaraderie between friends, but what else could it be? It couldn't possibly be…

Chiye yawned and stretched her arms "ok, I think its time to get some shut-eye. I'm really sorry I kept you up, by the way" she said, bringing her hands together and bowing low in apology.

Zuko waved his hand "It's fine."

Chiye smiled, straightening up again "alright, see you in the morning!" She started walking away. Then she suddenly stopped and looked over her shoulder "oh, and…thanks."

She walked through the trees before Zuko had a chance to say anything. He just stared after her. When he couldn't hear her footsteps anymore, he raised a hand and brushed the back of his neck. What was he doing? He knew his objective—capture the avatar. Why was it so easy to forget when he was with Chiye?

Zuko looked up at the sky. The moon was full, but it was partially covered by dark clouds. When those clouds become thick, does the moon forget which path it's supposed to follow? No, the moon knows its course just as Zuko knows that he must restore his honor. He mustn't forget his path.

…But the moon didn't decide its course. If it had a choice, would the moon stop revolving? What would happen? There is only one way to find out…


	10. Rejection

**Sorry it took a long time, guys. Just to warn yall, I probably wont write so much now that school is starting up ;; **

**But keep in touch!! Who knows, the new season of Avatar may inspire me Sept 21 Woot woot!!!!!**

Fiery and Forbidden (a Zuko love story): 10

Zuko awakened when he felt something small hit his cheek. He groaned and brushed whatever it was away. Strange, it was wet. Another fell on his forehead and on his arm. He begrudgingly opened his eyes. Dark clouds. Zuko groaned again. It was starting to rain.

Chiye was already trying to raise herself up onto her elbows and Iroh was still trying to sleep, although the rain was only getting worse. Zuko sat up and rubbed his eyes. Damn rain.

Zuko yawned. It was going to be a long day. He shakily stood up and tried to pack away his muddy cot. For once, he envied Chiye. She didn't have to carry a pile of muddy cloth for another forty miles. Oh well. Suddenly, the rain stopped falling on his back. He looked up. It was still raining, but Chiye was bending over him with an umbrella, smiling.

He smiled back and finished packing. He brushed some of the dirt off his bag and said "you should probably try keeping my uncle dry." Indeed, Iroh was still struggling to sleep, but it was becoming increasingly difficult as the area around him became more and more muddy. Chiye chuckled a little and walked there to make him wake up. Foolish uncle.

CHA CHA CHA SCENE CHAAAAAANGE!!!!!!!!

"You know, the umbrella is big enough for two people."

"Yeah, but…"

The three travelers had been walking for a long time down a deserted road. The rain continued to fall, and it only became heavier as the travelers drew closer to the city. Unfortunately, Chiye never carried any supplies, so there were only two umbrellas. Zuko, being the gentleman that he was, allowed Chiye to have his. Although, despite her reasoning, he just didn't want to be under the same umbrella. They'd just be…so close.

Chiye sighed, clutching the umbrella "I'm serious, I've been watching you get wet for the past hour. If you haven't already, you're going to catch a cold."

Zuko just continued staring at the mud "It's okay, I'm fine." He said coldly.

Indeed, Zuko was very wet and very cold. Maybe it was because he was from the fire nation, but being in the rain did anything but make him happy. But on the other hand, that voice in the back of his mind kept reminding him not to get too close to Chiye. They were becoming too friendly and what had happened the previous night only revealed how dangerously close they were becoming. After all, Zuko had to remember his mission. Any sort of relationship with Chiye would only distract him from his purpose.

Zuko felt a small hand lace with his fingers. Chiye pressed her body close to him, holding the umbrella overhead.

"Look, if you're not coming under the umbrella, then I'm bringing it to you." She said, wrapping her arm around his and making her steps firm.

Zuko would have leapt away if she hadn't kept such a tight grip on him. Instead, he had to endure walking this close to Chiye. He felt his face burn up. Was he running a fever, or was he blushing? Damn rain. Damn Uncle. Did he have to keep watching them? Couldn't he just butt out? Ugh, if its raining, why was it so hot?

Chiye could feel the tension in his arm. Poor Lee, she thought, he must really be getting sick. She squeezed his hand and whispered "Relax."

Zuko glanced at her. Easy for her to say, she was the girl. All she had to do was walk. But what was he supposed to do? Take the umbrella from her, to be polite? Or would that be rude? Why was it so damn complicated? AND WHY WAS IT STILL SO FRIGGIN HOT?!

Iroh smiled and laughed to himself as he watched his nephew panic. He didn't hide it well—his body was stiff with tension, and he was blushing uncontrollably. He was lucky that Chiye was a good girl. She couldn't help but notice, but she didn't give him trouble about it. Iroh stroked his beard. This whole arrangement was getting very amusing.

"I think we are almost there." Iroh said, still grinning at the expense of his nephew.

Chiye smiled "Good. I think Lee is coming down with something." Maybe she wasn't as sharp as Iroh thought.

NEXT--SCENE--NEXT--SCENE--NEXT--SCENE--NEXT--SCENE--NEXT--SCENE--NEXT--SCENE—

"Okay, so now what do we do?" Chiye looked up and the dark sky.

The three were currently taking refuge under the terrace of someone's house. There was no longer enough money to rent a room at an inn and Chiye couldn't dance in the rain. Not to mention, since she had put her fire nation collar back on, the travelers were getting many ugly stares. At least this town hasn't been taken by the fire nation yet.

Iroh looked at her hopefully "maybe we have enough money for a cup of tea?"

Chiye sighed at looked in her small coin purse. She had been handling the money, since Iroh could never refuse his patronage to a tea house. "Yeah, I think that's all we can afford. So why not?" She sighed again and grabbed one of the umbrellas. Zuko's fever had inexplicably stopped since she let go of his hand. Maybe it was a side effect of the natural heat she produced since she became a fire bender. Sounds crazy, but anything is possible, right?

Iroh led the way, passing shops that sold food and souvenirs until he came to a modest tea shop. A quick nod to the hostess, and then the three sat down at a table.

"I personally recommend jasmine tea. It captures both the fragrance and the sweetness of the flower." Iroh said, smiling down at the menu.

"It's kinda funny that you like the jasmine, Mushi" Chiye said as she touched her chin thoughtfully "It's a popular drink in the fire nation."

"Oh…uh …you don't say" Iroh laughed, embarrassed, as Zuko glared at him over his menu.

When the waitress returned, Iroh (of course) ordered the jasmine tea, Chiye had the green tea (improves endurance—plenty more miles to go!), and Zuko just wanted a glass of water.

"But water is so boring!" Chiye said as she handed the menu back to the waitress "Don't you want something better?"

Zuko folded his arms "tea is just hot leaf juice. I'm not interested."

Chiye laughed "Well, when you put it that way, you can make anything sound bad." She spotted the waitress returning. "Oh, that was quick."

But the waitress wasn't carrying their drinks. Instead, she approached the table with a look of half-disgust and half-resentment. "I'm sorry" she said without a hint of remorse "but some of the other customers have been complaining about—" she paused and nodded at Chiye, seemingly not knowing whether to say _her _or _that_. The three looked around the room. Indeed, ugly stares met them from almost every table.

Chiye blushed slightly and stood "I—I'm sorry" she said to the waitress with her gaze pointed at the table. The waitress only turned back around and walked away coldly. Chiye turned to Zuko and Iroh and nodded at them, her fists clenching at her sides. "I'm really sorry about this. I'll be outside." With that, she walked stiffly out the door and into the rain.

Zuko watched the door for a few moments, knowing that she wouldn't return but hoping nonetheless. Then he turned to Iroh "aren't we going to go after her?"

Iroh stroked his beard "…you go. And take an umbrella with you."

Zuko nodded and stood. He wasn't sure if his uncle had slipped into one of those rare moments of wisdom, or if he just wanted his tea. Either way, he had to find Chiye.

A

Aa

Aaa

Aa

A

It didn't take long to locate her. She was under the same terrace that the three travelers had taken refuge beneath earlier. She was just looking up at the sky, ignoring the rain that splashed around her feet. Her hands were still in fists at her side, and her face was contortioned into a look of pleading, as if asking 'why'. When Chiye spotted Zuko approaching, she averted her gaze to the ground. Her fists relaxed as she folded her hands in front of her. She didn't want to talk.

Zuko folded his umbrella and stood beside her, looking up "you know, you're going to catch a cold."

Chiye smiled slightly at the ground "…I'll be okay."

Zuko sighed "look, don't let that waitress bother you. She's just…" Zuko stopped, trying to grasp a word "…closed-minded."

Chiye shook her head "It's not the waitress. I'm used to people acting that way toward me, but—" she looked back up at the sky, "—taking off my collar yesterday reminded me of…of the good times." She sighed and smiled again. "Let's go for a walk."

Zuko unfolded the umbrella and held it over their heads. Somehow, he didn't feel uncomfortable being so close to Chiye today. It almost seemed natural for them to be walking together under the same umbrella. Under the falling rain, he almost missed her arm linking around his.

Chiye sighed again "when I was young, I was always pressured to train. By my father, by all my drill sergeants, it just never ended. But at the same time, I removed myself from the other fire nation children. So I never really had a childhood. But, every once in a while, there would be moments when I really would have fun. That's how I got so close to Hong. He was a slacker and he never took anything seriously, so he would always drag me to the river or to the woods instead of training practice."

Zuko glanced at Chiye. The dismal expression that she had under the terrace was completely changed into a fond, remembering smile. He sighed to himself. Of course he didn't like Hong, but he couldn't hate someone who could make Chiye smile so easily.

Chiye started twirling a lock of her hair around her finger "All of the fun that we had back at Tundai made me remember the good times that I had back then. And thinking about the past made me think about the future." She looked up at Zuko, putting her hand back at her side "what's going to happen now?"

Zuko looked down at Chiye as they continued walking. Her eyes, although black as night, were beautiful nonetheless. The lock of dark hair that she had been twirling strayed from its usual place, curving onto her cheek and leading towards her full lips, which were slightly parted in questioning anticipation.

Just then, a loose stone in the road threw Chiye forward. In an attempt to regain balance, her body twisted back, and one arm went flying towards the air. Zuko, with quickened reflexes from his training, stepped forward with one foot and managed to wrap his free arm around Chiye's waist without dropping the umbrella.

In less than a second, the two teens went from just walking to an almost tango-like dip. Zuko was holding the umbrella with one hand and supporting Chiye by the waist with the other. Chiye, her body at an angle and facing Zuko, had one arm limp while the other, the one that had grasped in vain for balance previously, had somehow delicately landed so that it was placed gently on his shoulder.

Suddenly, the rain stopped and the clouds parted, but Zuko didn't notice. He could only feel the blood rushing to his head. His face was only inches away from Chiye's. Their bodies were so close together, he could even feel the warmth radiating from her body. And yet, his senses dulled in comparison to the passionate emotions that erupted within him. All he could feel, as the space between their lips shortened, was her heartbeat against his chest.

"What's going on?" Zuko and Chiye stopped in their tracks. Powerful realization came flooding back as they scrambled to stand upright again. Both of them could feel the harsh burning in their faces that meant a heavy blush.

"I…uh…sorry 'bout that" Chiye looked off to the side as she brushed the back of her neck with her hand. But Zuko was already looking for the source of the voice that had stopped them a moment earlier.

"Is that a fire nation girl?"

"The fire nation's coming?"

"She couldn't be a soldier."

"But look at her neck!"

"We're all going to die!"

Cold comprehension flooded Zuko. The first voice had come from a woman, and it wasn't exactly calm. Her tension was slowly echoing through the crowds and escalating into alarm. This wasn't going to end easily. Chiye started noticing the distress as more voices joined in the overall lament of the people.

"But what's that boy doing?"

"Were they just—"

"She will kill us!"

"He's a spy!"

"Stop them!"

Zuko had grabbed Chiye's hand and was running as fast as his legs would take him. The crowd was only getting louder and louder and it was only a matter of minutes before the crowd would turn into a mob. Zuko could hear a number of people trying to follow them. He had to lose them. Right-left-left-right-left—he darted in and out of alleyways trying to lose whoever was following them—right-straight-left-left-right—they were coming close to the edge of town, and there were only a couple of people behind them—left-left-straight-right-right—the woods! Trees became visible only a few yards ahead. Zuko glanced back. They had lost the mob, but it looked like Chiye was about to pass out from exhaustion.

As soon as Zuko got into the woods and stopped, Chiye dropped to her knees with her palms on the ground as she tried to catch her breath. Zuko leaned against a tree and folded his arms. It's not like they had been running a marathon, she shouldn't be that tired.

Through her labored breathing, Chiye whispered "Wha-_huff_-what just happened?"

Zuko looked at Chiye and shrugged nonchalantly "Someone saw your collar and started chasing us. I thought you were used to it."

"No!" Chiye looked up. Tears streamed down her face as she tried to catch her breath "it was different this time. They weren't just trying to catch me. They were…they were chasing you too."

Zuko shrugged again. "So?"

Chiye lowered her head and closed her eyes. She willed the tears not to fall, but they came. "This is the first time…the first time that my transgressions have hurt someone else."

Zuko sat down in front of the crouching Chiye with one knee propped up "Don't be so worried about me, I'm fine."

Chiye shook her head. Her hands clenched against the ground, creating streaks in the dirt "but you could have been hurt! I know you're strong, but you couldn't take on an entire village by yourself. You could have died, and it would have been my fault!" She looked up with pleading eyes "It's never happened before, so what started it now?" As she looked at Zuko, her face changed from pleading to quiet realization. "We…we have to keep our distance from each other."

Zuko slowly raised his eyes in surprise. A strong emotion—almost like anger, but more like a counter to rejection—rose in his stomach. He opened his mouth to speak, but was stopped by the look in Chiye's eyes.

"Please" she said "I just couldn't forgive myself if anything happened to you. Stay away for my sake, if not for your own."

Her eyes, brimming with tears, pleaded with him. And the way that she begged him reminded Zuko of the first time he had seen her, back at Denang. She had begged the man with the gold piece for his sake back then, too.

Zuko sighed "are you going to stop traveling with me and my uncle?"

Chiye paused and sat back on her heels, hugging her knees "…no…I don't want to completely stop…seeing you."

Zuko sighed again, and then nodded. After all, hadn't he been telling himself that they shouldn't get too close? Then why did it hurt so much more when she said it?

He rose to his feet and held his hand out to Chiye "We'd better get going then."

Chiye looked up, into the unsmiling face of Zuko. His expression may have been serious, but she could sense more behind his exterior. A little bit of dejection, but also forgiveness. And maybe even something beneath that, but she couldn't tell what it was. Either way, he was right. It was time to get going. She grabbed his hand, and he lifted Chiye to her feet.

There was no more time for tears.


	11. The Ferry: Part One

**hello again, guys!!! ok, i realize that i didn't post two stories like i promised, and im kinda late otherwise, but CMON!!!!!!! GET OFF YOUR LAZY ASSES AND COMMENT MEEE!!! **

**ya, i know, great way to get yall to comment me. **

**seriously, if you guys comment me, ill update more often :)**

Fiery and Forbidden (a Zuko love story): 11

"I can't believe we're almost to the ferry!" Chiye practically skipped out of sheer joy.

"How can you possibly have so much energy?" Zuko said, irritated, as he sheepishly wiped the sweat from his forehead.

After the mob in Nakeron, Chiye and Zuko couldn't return to the city. Instead, they waited outside the town gates, hoping that Iroh would eventually turn up. It took nearly three hours for the old man to find them. From there, the travelers had no choice but to continue traveling. The rain wouldn't allow them to rest, so the trek lasted through the night and well into the next day. Thus, we rejoin the weary travelers.

Iroh simply stroked his beard "I wouldn't be too excited if I were you." He said to Chiye. "I don't think it will be easy to convince the ferryman to let a fire nation soldier onto his ship."

Chiye turned around and raised her forefinger "first of all, it's EX-fire nation soldier. And—" she turned back around so that she had her back to the boys, her hands clasped behind her "I've been thinking…" She let her voice trail off into the air for a minute before continuing, "…maybe I don't really need my collar."

Iroh's eyes grew in surprise, but Zuko only lowered his head further. He knew that it was because of what had happened the previous day—because she was worried about his safety. On the one hand, he couldn't help but feel a little resentful. It's not like he was a kid, he could handle himself. On the other hand, this is what he had been hoping for the whole time, right? For her to stop feeling sorry for herself, and to take off the collar. Then why did he get the feeling that Chiye wasn't particularly happy about removing it?

As Zuko thought, Chiye raised her hands to her neck and unlatched the collar. She turned back around and smiled "Shouldn't we get going? Maybe we can actually sleep on the ferry."

Iroh laughed and Zuko shrugged as they walked by her. Chiye watched them for a minute, her smile slowly fading. Her brow furrowed as she looked back down to the collar in her hands. Could she really shake off her burden as a fire nation soldier so easily? Chiye sighed and quickly slipped the collar into her sleeve. If the guilt became too great, she still had it.

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As always, it didn't take long for Chiye to return to her normal self.

"Ooh, look at the ferry." She excitedly pointed towards the ship, emulating a child at a circus. Zuko didn't know whether to laugh or roll his eyes.

Iroh, of course, laughed heartily "Just wait, we'll get there soon. First we have to show passports to the nice lady."

Zuko had to roll his eyes at this—Iroh was treating Chiye like she was five. Although, she was fitting the part. For spirit's sake, she was taller than Iroh!

Luckily, all three travelers had passports. Zuko and Iroh's, of course, were completely fake, and Chiye had a fire-nation issued passport that included her name, but identified her as an Earth Kingdom citizen.

It didn't take long to get on the ferry. Despite the long lines, the port was run smoothly by young, female security guards and grouchy, bureaucratic hags. Before they knew it, Chiye was running from one side of the ferry to the other as the ship departed towards the open ocean.

"I've never seen the sea before. It's so pretty!" she said as she leaned over the railing to get a better view of the water. Zuko couldn't help but feel like a weary mother as he pulled her by the scruff of her dress away from the side of the ship. Why was this trip turning out to be a party for her, but a job for him? Iroh, however, merely laughed at Chiye's excitement.

"Please, miss, refrain from leaning out of the boat." A bored voice came from behind them. An old man in uniform stood there with a cart in front of him. Apparently, he was the food supplier of the ship.

"Oh, hehe, sorry 'bout that." Chiye grinned and brushed the back of her neck. The man only gave the same bored expression as he reached into the cart and drew out three bowls of some brown slop. He shoved the bowls into each of their hands and then walked away quickly, probably to serve the same brown slop to some other ferry passengers.

Zuko and Chiye looked down at the food in their hands disgustedly.

"Is this even food?" Zuko said.

"I don't know, but even the army gives stuff that's not--" she swished the slop around in the bowl, searching for a word. "—this."

Iroh tentatively sniffed at the food, but quickly drew away in pure disgust. "It's not even edible."

"You're right about that. One taste and you're down for the count." The three travelers looked up from their slop, and saw a young boy. He was about the same age as Chiye and Zuko, but he looked a little rougher. He wore something like makeshift armor with two sheathed swords at his side. His complexion was dark, as were his eyes and his messy mop of hair. And yet, it was his messy, rugged exterior that made him somewhat handsome.

"The name's Jet, and these are my freedom fighters, Smellerbee and Longshot." The boy named Jet pointed behind him, towards two other teenagers. Smellerbee seemed just as rugged, but Chiye saw that she was female. Longshot, a boy, had a long face half hidden under a straw hat. A bow and a quiver of arrows were strapped to his back. Smellerbee said a quick "hey" and Longsot nodded.

"It's a pleasure to meet you" Iroh said as Chiye smiled and Zuko looked away.

"I wish we could meet under better circumstances." Jet lifted his bowl. "But I'm afraid this is the best we got."

Chiye sighed, staring at the slop in her own bowl "I guess it can't be helped. This is probably the best that the ferry could provide."

The edge of Jet's mouth raised slightly "Look, could I talk to you two in private?" he said, indicating Zuko and Chiye. The three travelers looked at each other, but Iroh eventually nodded, and Chiye and Zuko shrugged and followed Jet to the other side of the ship. Jet turned around and fingered the piece of straw in his mouth "Actually, the captain is keeping the best food to himself. It was originally meant for the passengers, but the captain only allows the rotten stuff to be given out."

Chiye gasped "That's not fair! How could anyone be so greedy?" Zuko lowered his gaze. As a prince, he was served the finest and most exotic foods if he so wished. However, he was well aware of the squalor that his servants lived in. He could easily remember seeing many of them eating a similar slop.

Zuko was snapped out of his daze when Jet addressed both him and Chiye, "That's why we need your help. We're planning to hijack some of the food tonight." He raised one eyebrow "you in?"

Zuko looked down into his food again. He knew the answer already—of course he was in. Anything to get some decent food. He'd even stay awake through the night again if he had to.

Chiye was less decided "But…stealing would be wrong." She said, looking down and putting one hand over her heart.

"I'm in." Zuko said decisively, throwing the bowl of brown mush overboard.

"What?! But, Lee, it's not right! That food isn't ours to take!" Chiye protested as her gaze snapped up.

Jet put a hand on his hip "but it's not the captain's to take, either," he said positively.

Chiye faltered, her brow furrowing in worry "But…"

Zuko looked at her comfortingly, but keeping his expression cold and distant "look, the captain stole the food in the first place. It was meant for the passengers, but he kept it. We're just setting things right. Besides," he allowed his expression to change ever so slightly, just to make sure that she understood his reassuring intentions "it's not like we would just be taking the food for ourselves. We'd give it to the rest of the passengers, too."

Chiye looked at Zuko's face for a minute, then lowered her head in defeat. "…okay. I'll help."

Jet removed the piece of straw from his mouth "Good. We'll need all the help we can get."

Chiye walked away slowly, sighing along the way. Might as well take another good look at the ocean. If they got caught, this might be the last time that she would see it from above sea level (if ya catch my drift).

Zuko watched her walk away. As the sea breeze blew past her, Zuko noticed that Chiye's hair was slowly getting longer. The first time he had seen her, her hair was cut short so that anyone could see the collar around her neck. But now, Chiye's hair gently brushed the top of her shoulder. He had to admit, long hair suited her better.

Jet closed his eyes and stuck the straw back into his mouth "by the way, I didn't catch your name."

Zuko likewise closed his eyes and leaned against the railing of the ship "It's Lee," he said shortly.

The freedom fighter opened his eyes again and looked at the faraway figure of Chiye "and hers?"

"Chiye. And the old man we're with is my uncle, Mushi."

Jet paused for a minute "Chiye, huh? She your sister?"

"No. She's just…" he hated to say it, but there wasn't any other word for it "…a friend."

Jet, unfortunately, picked up on his subtleties "Just a friend?"

Zuko was starting to get annoyed at his questions about Chiye, but he answered "…Yeah. Just a friend."

Jet gave a half smile, never taking his eyes off of Chiye "So she's on the market?"

Zuko pushed himself off the railing. He wasn't going to stick around for this. He started to walk away, but Jet caught up "Woah, sorry I struck a nerve. But you did say she's just a friend. If you don't, someone else is going to make a move."

Memories of Hong came flooding back to Zuko. Didn't he say something like that, too? 'don't leave her alone, unless you want someone else to take her'? Zuko shook his head. He had already tried to make a move, and she rejected him. There was nothing left to do. He folded his arms "It's none of my business. Go ahead and 'make a move' if you want."

As Zuko walked away, Jet looked back at Chiye with that half-smile of his.


	12. The Ferry: Part Two

**Hey guys, back again!! i know its taking a long time to write these things, but its hard :(**

**watever! ill try to be better at it**

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"So here's the plan," Jet said to Zuko, Chiye, and his freedom fighters, unfolding and pointing at a map of the ferry, "The ship is made of two stories. The bottom is to seat passengers, while the top is made up of the crew's quarters. Basically, all we need to do is climb the ladder, go down the hallway to storage, grab the food, and come back down before anyone notices. Longshot, Smellerbee, you're lookout. Lee, Chiye, you're with me."

They all nodded in unison. "When's this happening?" Chiye asked, folding her arms.

The corner of Jet's mouth rose "right now. Let's go." He grabbed Chiye's hand and made his way towards the ladder. Chiye's surprise, Zuko noticed, was masked with a faint blush as she submitted to Jet's leading her away. Zuko sighed deeply as he followed behind with Smellerbee and Longshot.

Up the ladder, down the hallway, into the storage area. Easy as pie. Why hadn't anyone done this sooner? Not a single guard showed himself as the three slipped into the small storage room. Each wall was paved with every kind of food available. Vegetables, meats, even some fruit pies made in the air-monk style. Chiye, Zuko, and Jet quickly gathered as much as they could, stuffing anything within reach into large sacks. It wasn't long before each bag was overflowing.

"Someone's coming," came Smellerbee's voice through the doorway. Not needing anymore prompting, Jet was already running out the door. Zuko was right behind him, but stopped at the doorway.

"Chiye, hurry up." She was still trying to gather whatever food she could reach, but she dropped the papaya she was holding at Zuko's command and ran after them. Jet had already disappeared down the ladder before Chiye or Zuko had entered the hallway. The two ran as fast as they could towards the lower deck. Zuko could feel his heart pumping in his throat, as the sound of unfamiliar footsteps came closer.

The steps were suddenly interrupted by a loud _thump_ that echoed through the corridor. Zuko looked over his shoulder. Chiye was lying on her side in the middle of the floor, trying to raise herself but flinching. Zuko didn't need an invitation. He wheeled around and sprinted to where Chiye was lying.

She turned her eyes to his face "I-I think I twisted my ankle." Zuko's eyes widened as they darted from Chiye's face, to her ankle, to the end of the hallway where approaching footsteps were getting louder.

"We've gotta get out of here" Zuko whispered hurriedly as he tried to grab Chiye's hand.

She snatched her arm back, "No. Take the food and go."

Zuko stared disbelievingly at her. "I'm not going to leave you here" he hissed, making another grab for her hand.

Chiye averted his grasp "I mean it. Leave." Zuko didn't move. "GO!" Chiye whispered harshly, "I think I have an idea. I'll be okay."

Despite himself, Zuko nodded slowly and grabbed the two sacks of food. He hated himself, but he obeyed Chiye and just managed to reach the ladder before the footsteps finally turned the corner to their hallway.

The three freedom fighters were at the bottom waiting for him. "What happened?" Jet asked severely when he spied Zuko's two sacs of food.

"Shutup." Zuko muttered, dropping the bags and looking back up towards the ladder.

"Where's Chiye?" Jet's voice rose as his brow furrowed and his jaw clenched around the straw in his mouth.

"Shutup." Zuko repeated, straining to hear what was going on above them.

Zuko felt Jet grab the front of his shirt and slam him against the wall mercilessly, "I'll ask you again," Jet said, tightening his grip on Zuko's collar, "Where's Chiye?"

Zuko pushed Jet off of him "She's still up there with the guard. Maybe if you would stop talking long enough to hear, we can see if she needs help."

Jet glared at Zuko, but quieted himself long enough to hear Chiye's voice.

"...I'm sorry again. I didn't see any bathrooms downstairs, so I just had to look up here."

A deep voice followed, "It's no problem, but you could have gotten into a lot more trouble if anyone else had caught you."

Zuko recognized Chiye's forced laugh, "Well, I guess I'm just lucky that such a—umm—kind man such as yourself found me."

The deep voice chuckled heartily, "I just couldn't leave a poor damsel in distress. And I'd hate to leave you in more distress. Are you sure you don't want to join me in my quarters?"

Chiye's forced laugh again "Captain, you should know that damsels only exist in story books. I'm sure I'll be fine."

"Very well, miss. Just be sure to see me again before you leave the ship."

"Oh, will do."

Chiye just barely managed to hoist herself down the ladder with her lame foot. Four incredulous faces met her when she finally reached the bottom. But she merely leaned against the ladder, ran a hand through her hair, and said, "can you believe that guy? He's gotta be at least four times older than me."

Zuko stared at her. Didn't she realize how reckless that was? Didn't she see that something worse could have happened? Zuko's fists clenched in frustration. And he just couldn't shake the feeling that she had just saved him yet again. If the captain had caught him, he probably would have had a worse sentence than promising to meet the slimeball again.

Jet stood speechless for a minute, seeming like he didn't know exactly what to do. But he quickly composed himself, strode over to Chiye, and thumped her on the shoulder.

"Good work," he said, not removing his hand.

Following their leader, Longshot nodded in improvement and Smellerbee said a quick "you're amazing."

Chiye blushed modestly and ran a hand through her hair again, "hehe, it was nothing."

"C'mon," Jet said as he led Chiye towards the deck "we need to pass the food out."

The four teenagers walked past Zuko, passing out their delicious treasures to anyone along the way. Zuko, however, stood for a moment, looking at Chiye. Her smiling face seemed to glow, her hair shone, and her movements were as graceful as a swan's as she passed bowls of food to her fellow passengers.

Zuko felt his fists clench again. He wished that Chiye would stop trying to save him. He wished that she would only think of herself for once. But most of all, he wished that he could be with her without pretending to be someone else.

Zuko walked out into the night air and rested his hands on the railing. He could never tell her everything, and he could never be with her. Those were the facts; that was his destiny.

Just like the moon's destiny was to spin. Forevermore.

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**god, this story is turning so angsty! sorry bout the lame ending, i realize that it sounded kinda forced...**

**R&R!!!!!!**


	13. The Ferry: Part Three

**hey guys! yeah i'm not dead, im here!**

**anyway, for my fans, im thinking of starting another fanfiction. if i do, its going to be based around the video game 'harvest moon'. but i don't know, i have to see where its going first. what that means for you--i might not update as often!! yeah...so...sorry -.-**

**also, tell me about any weird problems with the story. i didn't proof this one before i posted it...no time...**

Fiery and Forbidden (a Zuko love story): 12

"Look, it's not that bad. I could probably bandage it up myself" Chiye said feebly as Iroh wound a long piece of cloth over and over again around her ankle.

Iroh wouldn't allow Chiye to help with passing out food; her ankle had swelled to the size of a cantaloupe. Chiye, however, didn't settle down without a fight. She made it amply clear that she wanted to help in the distribution, ankle or no ankle. By the time she quieted down and agreed to stay put, all the food was already passed out. All this time, her ankle hadn't been taken care of, and it took a few more minutes of arguing to get her to agree to sit still and let Iroh bandage it.

"It is no problem to me, you've done enough. Now just sit back and be quiet" Iroh said slightly annoyed as he wound the bandage (perhaps a little tighter than necessary) again and again.

Chiye folded her arms and sat back against the railing. Her ankle wouldn't heal for another week, maybe just three days as long as she didn't walk on it too much. She sighed. Life is tough sometimes.

Zuko watched his uncle wrap the bandage around her ankle. Somehow, it reminded him of the first night that he had ever met Chiye, when she forced him to sit still while she sowed up the gash in his arm. That seemed so long ago now. Back then, he would never have imagined sitting with such a large group of people around him.

"Are you going to be okay with that ankle?" Jet's voice interrupted Zuko's train of thought.

Chiye nodded, "Once we get to Ba Sing Se, we won't have to travel anymore. I'll be fine." She said as Iroh finished knotting the bandage.

Jet sat back and fingered the straw in his mouth "I don't know, it's a long walk to Ba Sing Se from the port. If you like," he removed the straw and smiled enchantingly "we could escort you there."

Chiye laughed a little "I don't need—"

"After the ferry, we just take a trolley to the city" Iroh interrupted.

Chiye sat up and cocked her head slightly to the side, "what?"

"There's hardly any walking from the port to the city. Your ankle is going to be fine without an escort." He said calmly stroking his beard.

Chiye immediately reached out with her good foot and kicked Jet's leg playfully, "you liar! You knew the whole time."

Jet replaced the straw in his mouth and closed his eyes "guilty as charged. But my offer is still up for bids."

Chiye started saying something back to Jet, but Zuko couldn't listen. This was too much. It couldn't be enough that Chiye had told him to stay away, but now he had to listen to this…this rogue flirt with her. And just to make it worse, he couldn't deny the fact that he couldn't stop thinking about her. Maybe if he were different. Maybe if he were more charismatic like Jet (no matter how much he hated to admit it), maybe then there would still be the chance…

"Speaking of which, how did you know about the trolley, Mushi?"

Zuko was shaken out of his daze again. He looked up and saw Chiye looking questioning at Iroh, and Iroh looking slightly startled. It hit him. Iroh was the 'Dragon of the West' who had fallen at Ba Sing Se. Although he probably rode in on tanks or war machines, he probably would have been aware of any other entrances into Ba Sing Se. Of course, Iroh couldn't just tell Chiye that he had been a fire nation general who had almost broken the wall of the city.

"Oh, I—uh—I…heard about it from a friend…" Iroh stuttered, brushing the back of his neck.

"Oh, of course." She smiled and turned to Jet, "why are you three going to Ba Sing Se?"

Jet's previously calm face was suddenly overcome by a shadow as he lowered his head and stared harshly at the ground, "I've done some things that I'm not proud of, but I'm looking to start a new life."

Chiye was silent for a minute, as her own gaze lowered. Her stare, however, was of bittersweet feelings, "I know what you mean. I'm looking for a second chance, too."

Iroh nodded in agreement, and Zuko looked away acting indifferent.

Jet looked up again and fingered the straw in his mouth thoughtfully, "hey, could I talk to you two alone again?"

Zuko looked up, hearing that he was being addressed. Then, he looked at Chiye, who looked back and shrugged. Jet, Zuko, and Chiye rose from their places and followed Jet across the boat, stepping over people's sprawled legs along the way. Chiye, in between the two boys, grimaced from the shooting pain in her ankle. Jet didn't seem to notice, but Zuko was quick to grab her arm and help her walk.

When they reached the farthest side of the ferry, Jet turned around and smirked at both of them, "I'll get right to the point. What you two did tonight took guts. Lee, you were the first to volunteer when I asked for help, and, Chiye, you handled a delicate situation easily. I guess you could say that I'm proud of you two." Jet removed the straw from his mouth and paused, giving Zuko and Chiye time to relish his amazing compliment, "that's why I'm asking you both to join my band of freedom fighters."

Chiye's eyes grew wide as she looked from Jet to Zuko, not knowing what to say. Zuko, however, put a hand on her shoulder and merely said, "Sorry, we're not interested."

Chiye was obviously pleased by his nonchalant answer, as she looked up at him thankfully.

Jet looks at the both of them, eyes darting from Zuko to Chiye to Zuko and then to the hand that Zuko rested on Chiye's shoulder. He closes his eyes and sighed slightly, "I'm sorry to hear that. It would have been good to have you two on the team." He put the straw back in his mouth, "just know, if you two ever need help, the freedom fighters will be around."

Chiye let out a sigh of relief. She was hoping that a confrontation would not start, and she was glad that they could refuse so easily. She wasn't sure that she could have said no without Lee, though. She silently thanked Agni again that she had his support.

The three walked back to their small group (Chiye still being supported by Zuko), only to find Smellerbee stalking off in the opposite direction when they arrived. Without hesitation, Jet nodded to Longshot, who nodded back and followed after Smellerbee.

Chiye looked questioningly at Iroh as Zuko gently lowered her to the ground.

"I don't know what happened!" Iroh said apologetically, raising his hands in the air palms up, "I was just making small talk, and I suppose I accidentally called her a man."

Chiye looked taken aback, "you mean you couldn't tell?"

Iroh's eyes widened as he lowered his hands back down, "you could?"

Chiye shrugged, "Well, she just kind of looks more like a girl than a guy, I guess."

Iroh slapped his hand to his forehead, "I'll never understand women."

With that, everyone laughed and called it a night as they tried to find an unoccupied part of the ferry to sleep on. With so many people around, it was hardly easy. They eventually had to resort to sleeping on the hard wood of the deck. It wasn't exactly comfortable, but it was cool and the sea breeze was refreshing.

The only places available were a small, slightly damp corner of the deck and a larger section in the middle of the sleeping crowds. Zuko lowered Chiye onto the damp corner and sat down with her. There was barely enough room in the corner to sit, let alone sleep. However, soon after she was put down, Chiye's eyes started fluttering and her head started rolling to the side.

Zuko laughed to himself as he turned to look towards the center of the ship. He could see Iroh already sleeping as Smellerbee and Longshot tried to move his limbs in order to make room for themselves. But where was…

"Nice night, huh?" Jet smirked as he sat on the other side of Chiye.

Her head jerked up with a slight snort escaping from her throat. "I'm awake!" Chiye exclaimed as she rubbed her eyes with the back of her hand.

"Don't bother. You should get some sleep before morning." Jet propped his knee up as he leaned against the railing, "just make sure you don't fall overboard."

Chiye smiled weakly before finally dropping her head and drifting off to sleep.

Zuko looked across at Jet with his arms folded. His own eyelids felt like lead weights and his muscles were sore, but he didn't want to go to sleep before Jet. As far as Zuko was concerned, Jet wasn't someone to be trusted yet.

However, after less than ten minutes, Jet's eyes closed and his head dropped. Zuko looked towards the center of the ferry again. Iroh was, of course, still asleep, and Smellerbee and Longshot had found enough room to lie down. He was the only one still awake by this time, except for a few straggling travelers and some crying babies.

He looked back towards his own sleeping group. Jet was almost falling over to his side as he breathed heavily. Chiye was still upright, but her head had managed to tilt slightly upwards so that the light of the moon resonated on her face.

Zuko sighed. They looked good together. Jet had some sort of rugged exterior that contrasted so completely with Chiye's classic beauty, that they complemented each other. Zuko raised a hand to the scar across his face. Even now, it burned.

This scar—it represented every reason why he had to lie to everyone he met. His scar hid his identity as a firebender, as a prince…and even as a man. He could never sit next to Chiye and seem as natural as she did with Jet.

It could never happen, he repeated to himself.

It could never happen.

But—

It could never happen—ever.


	14. The Enemy

**Sup peeps! I'm back again! ok, so harvest moon fic going pretty good, ill let yall know when its up and running...has anyone out there played harvest moon? more specifically more friends of mineral town? watev, its cool. enjoy the story!**

Fiery and Forbidden: Chapter 14

Chiye grimaced again, "I thought there wasn't going to be any walking."

"I said that there wouldn't be much walking. I never said that there wouldn't be any at all." Iroh replied nonchalantly.

After departing the ferry, the three travelers were forced to hike along with the other passengers in order to reach the trolley. However, there were so many passengers that there was already a long line to get to the trolley terminal. The slow movement of the crowds in addition to the hike was putting a strain on Chiye's twisted ankle, even though Zuko had supported her the whole way.

He repositioned Chiye's arm awkwardly. Although Zuko had offered many times to carry her, Chiye insisted that she walk along side him while he held her right arm around his shoulders and wrapped his left hand around her waist.

"It wouldn't hurt so much if you just got on my back," Zuko said gruffly again as he struggled to see through the sweat formulating on his brow.

"I told you already, I'm just fine," she said as she winced again from the icy needles shooting through her foot.

It seemed like hours before they finally reached the front of the line. However, when they arrived, a sour, chubby hag awaited with a frown on her plump face and a large stamp in her left hand.

"passports," she said flatly, resting a large cheek against her equally large palm.

They each handed the woman their passports. She opened each one briefly, barely moving from her position.

"So that's," she opened the first again, "Lee," she opened the second "Mushy—"

"Actually, it's pronounced Mushi." Iroh interjected.

The hag merely grunted before opening the last one, "and…Goosha?"

Zuko and Iroh looked at Chiye, startled. She merely smiled at the woman and nodded. "Yes Ma'am."

The woman, however, noticed the surprised looks of the two boys. Her look of boredom completely disappeared as she eyed them suspiciously. "You three are traveling together, aren't you? Don't you know her name?"

Iroh laughed suddenly, a little louder than necessary, "of course we know _her _name, but—" he leaned his elbow against the hag's desk, "I don't believe I know your name."

The hag's face changed once again, this time from suspicion to a creepy form of flirtation, "Well, if you ever come by again, maybe I'll tell you…_rowr_." She growled as she handed the passports back to Iroh.

"Oh, I will," Iroh winked before leaving the giggling old woman.

Zuko groaned as he walked Chiye to a bench, "tell me I didn't just see that."

Chiye nodded sympathetically, "I wish I could unsee that."

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The trolley wasn't due to arrive for another half hour. This meant that Zuko, Iroh, and Chiye had to fight their way through the thick crowds in an attempt to find a place to sit. Through the screaming children, fat tourists, and generally mental people, they found the corner of the vast terminal to be a lot less inhabited.

Zuko lowered Chiye onto one of the unoccupied benches. "Thanks," she said, rubbing her swollen ankle "much more of that, and I would have to amputate the whole leg."

Zuko smiled and sat next to her. Iroh, on the other hand, had spotted a tea vender and was running after him faster than a flying bison.

The former prince sighed, "Aren't old men supposed to be feeble?"

Chiye giggled, "The way he moves like that, you'd think that he was only three years old."

"He's just enthusiastic about a hobby," Jet stepped from out of the crowds, with Longshot and Smellerbee behind him.

Chiye smiled and nodded at his comment, but Zuko only looked away. What could this commoner want now?

"Look, I know you two already refused," Jet continued, "but I want you to know, the freedom fighters are around. It's never too late to join."

Chiye's smile faded as she looked down guiltily. She hated to refuse, but there was something about Jet that felt…unsafe.

Zuko, however, stood up, "Let's talk over there," he said, indicating Jet and a corner of the room. Jet smirked and nodded. The guy must have finally come to his senses.

Chiye rose as well, but Zuko glanced at her and shook his head. "Wait here for my uncle" he said before leaving. Chiye sat down again, silently, and folded her hands in her lap while searching for Mushi. He was still at the tea vendor's cart, complaining about how cold the tea was.

Zuko, once reaching the end of the room, turned around to face Jet. "Look," he said, crossing his arms, "you need to stop asking about joining your little gang. We're not interested."

Jet merely smirked and raised a hand to the straw in his mouth, "Maybe you aren't, but maybe she is." He tossed his head slightly in the direction of Chiye, where Iroh had just returned with a cup of tea in his hands and a sullen look on his face.

Zuko's eyes narrowed, "stop asking her. You know she wouldn't be able to refuse by herself."

Jet turned around and closed his eyes, his smirk never leaving his face.

"That's what I'm counting on."

In only a moment, Zuko stepped forward and grabbed Jet's collar, forcing him to turn around. "Stay away from her," Zuko snarled, his face inches away from the rogue's.

But that terrible smirk on Jet's face only widened, "You gonna hit me, or what? It would only help turn her around to my side."

Zuko's face twitched as he disgustedly shoved Jet back. Jet, however, only stumbled slightly before standing up straight and brushing the dust off his front. "Too bad," he said, "you would have made a great freedom fighter."

Zuko glared at Jet one last time before striding back to Chiye. He would have to be careful with her from now on. This was different from the times when a strange man would gawk at her—Jet was out to recruit Chiye into some street gang. To make it worse, Zuko had seen Jet's speed and stealth back at the ferry, when they were stealing the food. Jet wasn't an amateur with a sword, he was a real fighter. Zuko wasn't sure if he could beat Jet in a fight…

"Let me see it," Chiye grabbed Iroh's tea from his hand.

"No, it's all right, I can drink it cold!" Iroh desperately tried to snatch the tea back, but Chiye evaded.

She looked at the brown-green liquid in the cup. Small pieces of dried tea leaves swirled within the liquid, as steam floated from its surface. Zuko froze in his tracks—

Iroh had firebended the drink.

A cold wind blew from his head all the way down to his feet. A rock landed right in his gut. The scene before him swirled. All he could think was, "_I've been found out…I've been found out…it's over…_"

"…It's not cold…" Chiye whispered, still staring at the cup.

Zuko's pulse quickened. His heart felt like it was going to thrust right out of his chest. All of his memories with Chiye swirled in his mind. What was going to happen now? What was he going to do? This couldn't be the end, could it?

Chiye handed the cup back to Iroh, "I can't believe you could even drink tea that's hotter than this. You'd better be careful, otherwise you'll scar your throat."

Zuko almost fell flat on his face. After all that, she didn't get it? How dense was she? Thank Agni she didn't…

He turned around and looked back at Jet. Just before he walked away, Zuko thought that he saw the faintest expression of discovery on Jet's face.

Discovery…mixed with anger…mixed with triumph


	15. Showdown

**another week, another update :) and i FINALLY got them to Ba Sing Se!!! it kind of took forever, but we're getting kinda close to a finale!! ooooo i cant wait!!!**

FIERY AND FORBIDDEN (A ZUKO LOVE STORY): CHAPTER 14

"I am sure you three will make valuable additions to the shop," said a tall, thin, slightly dirty tea shop owner.

Chiye, Zuko, and Iroh stood before the man in the store's uniforms. Zuko and Chiye averted their gazes from anyone's eyes—they felt too embarrassed. Zuko and Iroh's uniform consisted of a white apron and a tall, ridiculous hat. Chiye's, on the other hand, consisted of an entire ensemble. She was required to wear a similar apron, but it had lacy frills running along the seams. Not to mention the apron was form-fitting and the skirt was way too short.

"Is…Is this the entire uniform?" Chiye asked, tugging at the bottom hem of her skirt with a blush on her face.

The tea house owner nodded, "Sorry for the inconvenience. The previous wearer of that uniform was much younger and much smaller than you. I'm ordering another uniform right now." Chiye nodded, still a little worried.

Iroh pulled the back of his apron, "Does this come in a bigger size?" he asked as he struggled to secure the string around his frame.

The tea house owner nodded again, "I should have some extra string in the back. Please wait right here." The man poured three cups of tea for the new employees and strode away.

"…I feel ridiculous," Zuko said, looking down at himself.

"_You _feel ridiculous?" Chiye asked incredulously as she continued to pull at the hem of her skirt. "I really hope that other uniform comes soon."

Meanwhile, Iroh drank deeply from the tea that the owner had given them. As soon as the liquid hit his tongue, Iroh was forced to gag. It was scalding hot, and tasted like…well, it definitely didn't taste like jasmine.

"I see we will have to make some big changes around here." Iroh lifted the pot and strode towards the window, throwing the vile concoction outside.

The three had arrived in Ba Sing Se about a week ago. It wasn't easy, but Iroh had somehow managed to find a small shack. It was dirty, smelly, and overall disgraceful. For the first three days, Zuko wasn't able to ignore the revoltingness of their living quarters. After the week had passed, however, it seemed slightly less dirty, smelly, and disgraceful. Iroh, being the humble man that he was, acted as if he had been living there his entire life. Chiye didn't complain, of course, but instead took on the duties of homemaker. Zuko had no idea why—it seemed like years of intense scrubbing wouldn't remove all of the dirt.

Zuko just couldn't get used to it, though. He had been a prince, right? So how did he come to be reduced to this? It could never really be home. The best this shack could hope for was an unpleasant memory in the back of Zuko's mind.

Iroh worked his magic and got all three of them jobs at a small tea house a week later. The only reason why he had waited so long in the first place, he boasted, was because Chiye was still healing. Indeed, her ankle healed miraculously; ever since the three had arrived at their 'new home', she had worked tirelessly, ankle pain or no ankle pain.

And here they were. A small, dirty tea house. Zuko was just lucky like that…

XXXXXXOOOOOOOOOOXXXXXXXOOXOOOOOOOOOXXXXXXXXXOOOOO

LATER THAT NIGHT…

"OK! Coming right up!" Chiye smiled and waltzed to the kitchen, sashaying around the hoards of people in the way. "Two lemon and a green," she said, ringing a bell and handing the ticket to Iroh.

"Two minutes," Iroh grinned, putting another teapot on the fire while simultaneously pouring three cups of raspberry tea.

Zuko sighed. From the deserted shop this morning, the tea house had become the most crowded place in the entire city. Probably because of the improved tea…and a certain short-skirted waitress. Even Zuko couldn't restrain himself from glancing at Chiye every once in a while. At the rate that people flooded in, Chiye wouldn't be getting that new uniform anytime soon.

"Doing good?"

"Huh? Uh…yeah." Zuko looked up at Chiye.

She beamed. "Great." And then skipped off to take another order.

Zuko looked down at his work: a dirty table and a lot of dirty cups. Yes, Zuko was the tea house's busboy. And it was great…just great.

"Don't worry. We're almost done." Chiye said, running behind him with a full tray of tea in her hands.

That was the best conversation that they'd had all night. The tea owner was too cheap to pay for more staff, so Chiye, Zuko, and Iroh had been running around the tea house all day without rest. Zuko prayed the tea house owner would pay them well.

Suddenly, an explosion rang throughout the tiny shack. Zuko jumped and looked to the door to meet the dark eyes of a familiar rogue—Jet. Zuko's eyes widened, what did he have planned?

Jet smirked at his audience. His entrance had captured the attention of the entire tea house. "Listen up," he said loudly, "these people aren't what they seem."

Chiye stopped running around the room to stare at the teenager, still holding a tray of empty cups. Even Iroh stopped to see what was happening. The crowd looked at each other confusedly.

Jet pulled his two hook swords from his back, "they're from the fire nation, and they're here to spy on us. You all need to get out now!"

Zuko heard a loud shattering noise behind him. He turned and saw Chiye with broken glass around her feet and a look of pure, gaping horror on her face. His heart sank, this time he really had been found out. This time there was no avoiding it. This time, everything was over.

From the corner of his eye, Zuko saw Iroh running to the front of the store with his palms raised. "Stop, stop!" he shouted, coming to a stop, "Don't you see that you are making a big mistake?"

Jet pointed a sword straight at Iroh, "You've already made the mistake of coming into this city. Now you'll have to pay—" he raised one sword above his head, ready to strike.

Just in time, Zuko grabbed two swords from two policemen and raised them in time to clash against Jet's strike, inches away from Iroh. With a hard kick, Zuko pushed Jet back towards the door.

"Go ahead," Jet sneered, regaining his balance, "use your firebending! Then everyone will know! Show them!"

Zuko walked outside and took his stance, spreading his legs far, ready to attack. "I'll give you a show," he said as he leapt into the air, crashing down with all his might at the invading rogue.

--Not in time! Jet managed to jump back just in time to evade Zuko's attack. Swords flashed beneath the moon, moving so fast that hardly anyone could tell what was happening. Dodge-Strike-Dodge-Strike! The battle raged on, both boys evenly matched.

"I bet you wish you had help from your little fireballs, don't you?" Jet smirked, swiping a hook blade across the middle and following it with a second across the shoulder.

Zuko dodged the first and parried the second, leaving a small opening in Jet's defense. "you're the one who needs help," he said, slashing towards Jet's feet.

Jet easily evaded the attack, jumping onto the mouth of a well. Once more, he raised both swords to attack Zuko. But suddenly, his right sword was shot out of his hand. Jet looked at his empty hand, confused, as Zuko leapt away, unaware of what had just happened. The second was jolted out of Jet's hand, just as suddenly. All at once, a net went streaking through the air as two officials stepped out of the crowd. The net immediately ensnared a writhing Jet and dragged him towards the two men.

One turned to Zuko and nodded, "We are sorry for the inconvenience. We shall take this criminal to questioning and rehabilitation immediately." The two men disappeared just as soon as they had materialized, this time slinking away holding a cursing Jet between them.

Zuko watched them leave, almost suspicious of their strange entry and departure. Who were those guys?

"Lee?..." a soft voice asked behind him.

Realization slapped Zuko in the face. He spun around in horror to look at Chiye. She had followed the whole fight scene to the middle of the square, where they were now. She seemed breathless, her cheeks flushed and sweat pouring down her face.

She took a step forward. Her forehead crinkled in confusion, her lips parting in questioning, and her eyes watering with fear. She slowly took another step towards Zuko. Suddenly, the town started spinning around him again. 'What now' was all that Zuko's mind could wonder as he struggled not to fade.

Chiye stepped forward again. Before he had realized it, Chiye ran full speed to Zuko and wrapped her arms around his neck in an embrace. She buried her head into his shoulder, her shoulders heaving as she shook violently.

"I'm so sorry," was all that she said before collapsing against him, sobbing uncontrollably.


	16. Bittersweet Moments

**Okay, guys, really important chapter coming up. i wont ruin it, but let's just say your going to fall to the ground thanking me once you read this chapter. but i wont spoil it :)**

**in other news, my harvest moon fic is going to be published either tonight or tomorrow night, so keep an eye out **

**Oh, and review. I MEAN IT GUYS, GIVE ME SOME REVIEWS!!! Now, without further ado...**

Fiery and Forbidden (a Zuko Love Story)

Zuko, Iroh, and Chiye walked back to their shack in silence. After the episode with Jet, it was hard to strike up a conversation. Zuko glanced at the other two. Iroh seemed okay for the most part, just deep in thought. But Chiye…

Her face seemed completely overcast as she stared at the ground. After Jet was carried away, she was completely torn apart. She just leaned against Zuko and cried for a long time. Since then, the tears stopped, but she didn't act like her normal self.

What was she thinking? She said that she was sorry, but for what?

They arrived at the three room cottage. Immediately, without a word to Zuko or Iroh, Chiye walked into her room and closed the door softly.

Zuko tossed his head toward her closed door, "what do you think is wrong with her?"

Iroh glanced towards the room and leaned in to Zuko, holding a hand up to his mouth to whisper. "I don't know. It could be that she is still trying to process our…origins. But it could also be that she was surprised by Jet's capture."

Zuko's forehead creased worriedly as he glanced again to Chiye's door again. "Should I go ask her what's wrong?" he whispered.

Iroh shook his head. "The best thing you can do is to let her have some privacy. She may react negatively if you rush her."

Zuko nodded, but he didn't feel comfortable with this. If Jet had blown their cover, why would Chiye apologize? It just didn't add up. There was something else bothering her, but what was it?

XXXXxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Zuko listened to Iroh's rhythmic snoring. He knew it would be a bad idea to share a room with him, but he didn't know it would be this bad. Throughout the week, Zuko had barely slept.

But tonight, it didn't matter. There was too much on his mind to sleep. One room away, practically through the wall, what was happening to Chiye? Zuko turned over to his side. How could Iroh sleep at a time like this?

Zuko sighed and threw the sheets off of him. He delicately stepped over his uncle and walked out the bedroom door. The cold moonlight flooded into the 'living room', casting shadows along the walls. Zuko shivered as he strode to the second bedroom door. Chiye's room. He paused at the door, was he supposed to knock? He shook his head. That's ridiculous, she's probably asleep.

He slowly, gently slid the door along its grooves so that it was open only a crack. It was a paper sliding door, so it barely made a sound, thankfully. He peered inside, toward the futon in the middle of the floor. It was empty. Zuko slid the door a little farther, just enough so that he could lean in and see a little more of the room.

It took a minute before he spotted her. Chiye was sitting on her knees facing the window on the opposite wall. A gentle breeze wafted into the room, billowing Chiye's long, raven hair. Zuko could just barely see her profile, shining palely against the light.

Zuko took a deep breath and slid the door all the way open.

"Hey," he said, stepping inside.

Chiye jumped, spinning around quickly. Once her eyes adjusted to the dark room, recognizing her companion, she sighed and leaned against the windowsill, averting her gaze from Zuko to the ground.

"You're not sleeping?" he asked, hoping for conversation.

She merely kept her eyes fixed at the ground, her hands folded in front of her and her hair covering part of her face.

"Is the light from outside keeping you up? We could switch rooms if it's too bright." He said.

Still, she remained silent. Not even moving at the sound of his question.

Zuko sighed. It was a good try, but he should probably leave. Standing and turning around, he brushed some dirt from his front and said, "you should get some sleep. The tea house owner is making us get up really early—"

"I'm sorry."

Zuko turned back around. He was almost unsure that it had come from Chiye; she hadn't moved at all. The only difference was a thin, moonlit streak of water running down her face.

"…You have nothing to apologize for." Zuko sat down again.

Chiye turned her face to look straight at Zuko, her face contortioned in pain, "Yes I do! It's my fault Jet attacked you!"

Zuko's eyes widened. That's what she thought?

Chiye looked away again, rising and pacing the room as tears flowed freely down her face, "…I don't know how, but Jet found out that I was a firebender. He must have assumed that you and Mushi were, too."

"You've got to be kidding."

"Well, that's the only explanation!" Chiye came to a halt, kneeling down inches away from Zuko's face.

Zuko looked at Chiye. Defiance and guilt were written all over her face. A small voice in the back of Zuko's mind started yelling at him. Now was the time to tell her. If there was any time, it was now.

"It—It's not your fault!" He told her, looking straight into her black eyes.

Chiye turned away, clutching her arms around her waist, "Of course it's my fault."

Now, Tell her now!

"It's—I--don't—" the words struggled to form in his mouth. Tell her NOW!

"I'm leaving in the morning." Chiye whispered.

Suddenly, the words didn't matter anymore. For one single moment, his confession didn't matter anymore. "Wha—What?" Zuko whispered, unable to believe what she had just said.

She shook her head slowly, "I'm causing you and your uncle so much trouble. I caused JET so much trouble…I have to leave the city."

"And go WHERE?" Zuko started shouting, rising from the floor and balling his hands into tight fists. Nothing made sense anymore. How could she leave, just like that, after all this time? What was she thinking?

Chiye looked up at him, startled at first. But then she looked away again, with that excruciating look of pain on her face, "I don't know. I just need to leave."

Zuko, spotting her expression, lowered himself and peered into her face, not shouting anymore, "you're not thinking clearly. Get some rest and you'll think differently in the morning."

"No, I'm thinking completely clearly." She turned her eyes upwards, meeting his, and whispered, "do you remember? After we got chased out of town in Nekaron?"

Zuko frowned and nodded. He wished he could forget. She was crying then, too, as she pleaded Zuko to keep his distance from her.

Chiye raised the sleeve of her dress and dabbed her eyes. "…I can't escape. I've been running from the fire nation for so long, abandoning everything I knew. But it doesn't matter. I can't escape my destiny…"

"…No." Zuko whispered. Chiye looked up questioningly.

He looked straight into her eyes, locking her in his gaze. "Your destiny…can't follow you." He didn't even know what was coming out of his mouth anymore. "You…and you alone…shape your destiny."

Chiye looked down, again. Beneath the shadows, Zuko could just make out the faint outlines of a small smile. "…it's a beautiful thought," she whispered

"But you don't believe it, do you?"

She looked up again, a sad, solemn smile on her face, "…Maybe I can learn to."

Her smile, her sad, sweet aura, and her deep black eyes all drew Zuko in. He didn't know it had happened until it happened. All at once, he closed the space between them, his lips brushing against hers.

She retreated, surprised and shocked, her hand rising to her lips, but her eyes remained locked with Zuko's.

She smiled. But it was different. Her sadness seemed to fly out the window, replaced with a glowing light. Pure happiness.

She leaned back in, shyly taking his lips with her own. Her hands delicately wrapping around his neck as his arms ensnared her waist. No longer was the secret of the prince keeping them apart. No longer was her guilt driving them away. It was just a normal, earth kingdom boy with a normal, earth kingdom girl.

And that was the way Zuko wanted to stay…forever.

But the end came too soon. Chiye pulled away again, but this time not with a look of surprise, but of responsibility.

"We can't do this, you know." She said, averting her eyes.

"…I know." Zuko whispered and nodded. He knew that Chiye wouldn't accept life as a guilt-free earth kingdom girl right away. And, of course, there was Zuko's prince hood. It couldn't work out, could it?

Chiye rested her head on his shoulder, staring out the window. "But I will stay," she said drowsily, sleep slowly setting in, "your…pretty words…inspired me…with…"

Zuko laughed to himself. She didn't even know what she was saying anymore. He ran his hand down the side of her cheek, stopping to raise her chin to meet his eyes. One final kiss, one final sign of affection, was enough to keep him going.

His lips brushed against hers again, only slightly, only for a moment, before she rested again against his shoulder, fully asleep.

Running a hand through Chiye's long hair, Zuko whispered a final "goodnight" before leaning against the wall and closing his eyes.

That kiss was enough—more than he had ever hoped for. It was enough to keep him going…

…for a while.

**Read & Review**


	17. The Morning After

**hey there! back for another chapter. i dont know how it happened, but all of a sudden im sticking with the normal plot a lot :P i didn't originally plan it. i was just supposed to go loosely with the storyline, but here i am. ill break away occasionally though...ok anyway, enjoy!**

Zuko's eyes fluttered open. He winced as his pupils attempted to adjust to the bright sun blaring through the window. What time was it?

Looking around, he quickly noticed that he was not in his own room. Sweet memories of last night flooded back into his mind. But where had Chiye gone? She wasn't in the room.

Zuko opened the sliding door casually, but almost tripped over himself at the sight in the kitchen. Pots and pans lay everywhere, strewn across the table and floor, all hopelessly dirty.

"Morning, Sleepyhead!" Chiye sang, waltzing around a small pile of dishes.

Zuko raised an eyebrow. "What is all this?"

Chiye grabbed a bowl of yellow liquid and started attacking it with a whisk, "Well, I wanted to make breakfast, but I didn't really know how." She set the bowl down and grabbed a frying pan.

"I thought you told me you could cook." Zuko followed the flying pancakes with his eyes as Chiye flipped them over and over again within her frying pan.

"Kind of. I can prepare fish and I can identify edible berries and things like that, but I've never worked with…" Chiye picked up a small box, reading the label, "…Flour."

Zuko looked at the pancakes again. They weren't dangerous looking, but there was definitely something wrong with them.

"Take a seat. I'm almost done." She pointed with her spatula to one of the only two chairs that were empty.

Gingerly, he sat down and watched Chiye bounce around from frying pan to frying pan, tasting this and sprinkling that. There was something different about her—something that Zuko had never seen before. He wanted to think that she was happier or that she had suddenly come alive, but that wasn't it. Between her flipping pancakes or her whisking eggs, there was some sort of gleam in her eye. Something like…regret?

"I smell something good in here." A very drowsy Iroh stumbled into the room.

"Yeah, I think I'm just about done." Chiye flipped her pancakes one more time, and then put them on a plate with a couple strips of mooselion bacon and lizardchicken eggs.

"Enjoy!" Chiye grinned broadly as she set two plates in front of the boys.

It looked okay, but even the most harmless looking mushrooms can be deadly. Zuko rolled his eyes, he'd been listening to Iroh too much. Okay, first the bacon. It didn't taste bad…in fact, it tasted pretty good. The eggs were even better.

But the pancakes…as soon as it hit Zuko's palate, he had to gag. What the hell…how much sugar did she put in?

Chiye noticed Zuko's reaction, and Iroh's wasn't much better. Her face lowered and she looked down a little, "sorry. I guess two cups of sugar really was too much…"

Zuko coughed, "TWO CUPS?"

She laughed nervously, "yeah, I mean, they are cakes aren't they? You know…pan-cakes."

Zuko stared at her for a minute like she was out of her mind. Then, a deep rumbling sound came from his throat. Laughing? The rumbling escalated within the minute until he was absolutely hysterical. He had never laughed like this before, especially in front of his family. Indeed, Iroh looked at Zuko as if he had completely lost his mind.

Chiye, on the other hand, smiled and laughed right along with him.

She stood and grabbed the plates, "Well, it was a good try. I'll make sure to get the recipe right next time."

Zuko wiped the tear that had formed from his eye, "yeah."

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The morning (and especially the night before) had been a relief, but Zuko forbid himself to forget what had happened yesterday. Jet's outburst could have sparked a lot of suspicion within Ba Sing Se. All through the day, Zuko felt like each customer was looking at him strangely. But he wasn't sure if that was real or just his imagination.

…Until later in the afternoon. One girl about his age kept staring at him, and when he made eye contact, she looked away quickly. Not to mention she stayed in the tea house for an abnormally long time. Something was definitely wrong.

"Uncle, don't look now, but I think we have trouble." Zuko said, coming to the counter and handing Iroh a tray full of dirty tea cups.

Iroh scanned the crowds, until his eyes rested on the corner where the strange girl was.

"I told you not to look." Zuko snapped, forcing Iroh to avert his gaze. "I think she's on to us."

"Who's on to what now?" Chiye said, appearing to the right of Zuko with an empty tray.

Zuko froze, but Iroh quickly said, "my nephew seems worried about that girl in the corner." He nodded in the direction of the young woman.

Chiye glanced over, "oh, her. She's been coming to the tea house a lot lately. And she's been shooting Lee here a couple of good looks." Chiye winked at him.

Zuko could feel his face start burning up, "L-Looks?"

She grinned broadly, "yeah, _looks. _You haven't noticed?"

"No…I—"

"Thanks for the tea." A voice sounded behind them.

The three looked around, and (speak of the devil) there was the strange girl. She held out a fistful of cash to Zuko, who took it embarrassedly. He couldn't help but feel like an animal on display.

"My name's Jin and I—uh—wanted to ask if you wanted to get something to eat later on tonight." She ran a hand through her bushy hair, looking away with the slightest sign of a blush on her face.

Zuko's eyes widened as his face started growing beet red. He opened his mouth to decline, but he was too slow.

"He'd love to!" Iroh said happily.

Zuko twisted his gaze to look horrified at Iroh. Grabbing the old man's shoulder and forcing him to turn around, Zuko leaned down and whispered harshly. "What are you doing? You can't be serious."

Iroh whispered back, just as harshly, "I know what you're thinking, and you need to stop. Chiye is not ready for a relationship, and I doubt she will be soon. In the meantime, you need to get out more."

"Look, just because—"

"When can he meet you?" Chiye said happily to Jin.

Zuko jolted around, his mouth hanging open. Had he just heard her right?

"Um…well, how about we meet here at 7:00?" the girl said, a little confused as to why she was talking to Chiye rather than Zuko himself.

"Great, Lee'll be here." Chiye grinned again, as if she had just closed a very fair deal.

Jin nodded, still confused, but walked out of the shop happily nonetheless.

"Come here," Zuko grabbed Chiye's elbow and dragged her to a corner of the kitchen.

"Ouch, Lee, that hurts," Chiye winced slightly as Zuko spun around and looked her in the face.

"What's the big idea?" Zuko said harshly as his brow dipped in anger and confusion, "why would you set me up like that?"

Chiye cocked her head to the side and smiled slightly, "O c'mon. She's cute, you'll have fun."

"I don't need you to schedule dates for me!" he said, struggling to keep his voice down as he started pacing the floor, "What is with you? First you're talking about leaving, then we're…you know…Then you turn around and try to set me up on a date! What's your problem?"

Chiye's eyes widened in surprise. Maybe Zuko went too far. She composed herself quickly, though, and calmly said, "I don't mean to give you mixed signals, Lee." She averted her gaze to the ground, "I just…I'm kind of confused right now." She looked up, into his deep, golden eyes, "It would help me if…if you did this."

How could he refuse when she looked at him that way, with her eyes wide and pleading and her lips parted slightly. Any anger that he had quickly drained out of him, leaving behind only a deep sense of compliance. Zuko nodded slowly, "Fine. But I can't promise anything."

Chiye relaxed, shooting him a grateful look before turning around and leaving the kitchen silently.

Zuko sighed and followed her out, grabbing a dishtowel on the way to wipe tables with. She knew exactly how to make Zuko do what she wanted him to. He still didn't understand what was going through her mind, but he would willingly do anything she wanted him to do…

…even if it meant spending an evening with someone else.


	18. The Date

**sup peeps. i got a long chapter for yall. so im almost done with the story, and im debating whether i make a sequal or just keep adding to the main story...i just dont know -.- anyway, enjoy chapter 18**

"Uncle—oww—shouldn't you—owch—shouldn't—ow—STOP!"

Iroh withdrew the comb from his nephew's hair, frowning. "I'm almost done, prince Zuko. Just a bit more grease." Iroh grasped the bottle again.

"No, Uncle—" before Zuko could stop him, Iroh had dribbled another gob of oil onto his dark hair and had started attacking with a comb.

In less than twenty minutes, Zuko would be heading out on his date. Iroh and Chiye had been running around making preparations for him, but it didn't ease the feeling of dread in the pit of Zuko's stomach. Right now, Iroh was conquering Zuko's shaggy hair while Chiye was trying to get a reservation at a restaurant. Apparently, even in the outer ring of Ba Sing Se, all nice restaurants were booked up. Chiye had left a long time ago.

"There. Was that really so bad?" Iroh stood back and put his hands on his hips, admiring his handiwork.

Zuko glanced in a mirror. Iroh had definitely managed to get his hair neat, but is that what it was supposed to look like? His hair was smoothed down and parted neatly down the middle of his scalp.

Just then, Chiye burst through the door. "I can't say it's the best restaurant," she said, triumphantly and exhaustedly, "but I got you a reservation…at…" Her voice trailed off, as her eyes rested on Zuko. He brushed a lock of hair out of his face as he looked up expectantly.

"Do you like it?" Iroh beamed proudly, "it was the height of fashion in my day."

Chiye's lower lip retreated between her teeth as she struggled not to laugh. Zuko, completely humiliated by his 'fashionable' uncle, looked down with a deep blush.

"I-I'm sorry," she said, still struggling not to laugh, "jus-just...Pfft." He hand flew to her mouth in a last attempt to contain her laughter as her eyes began to water.

Her efforts merely made Zuko slouch deeper and turn his face into an even brighter shade of red, "just say it. It looks stupid."

"N-No! It-It looks…" Her hand fleeted from her mouth to her waist as she held her sides, laughing hysterically. If possible, Zuko slouched farther and looked back to the mirror. Shows how smooth he was with girls, he couldn't even get a decent hairstyle. Iroh raised his eyebrow silently, still trying to figure out what was wrong with his fashion sense.

"I'm—haha—I'm so sorry! It's not so—hehe—not so bad!" She brushed a tear from her eye, still giggling but starting to calm down. "Look, all you have to do is—" she reached out and ran her hand through Zuko's dark hair a few times, changing it back into the messy locks that Zuko had had originally.

Iroh shook his fist, "I spent ten minutes on his hair!"

Ignoring Iroh, Chiye bent down so that she was eye-level with Zuko. "you look a lot better with messy hair, anyway." She cocked her head to the side and smiled playfully. This didn't exactly help Zuko's blush leave his face.

"Now," Chiye straightened and clapped her hands, "it's about time you got going." She started walking about the small room, gathering Zuko's various dating-weapons (a wallet, flowers, etc.). "What are you doing? Up, up, up!" Chiye grabbed Zuko's hand and pushed him toward the door. "Remember, you're taking Jin to Binke's Bistro. And don't be so cheap as to go dutch or anything. Now GO!" With a final shove, Zuko stumbled out the door and towards the street.

"Oh there you are," a small figure stepped out from the shadows. Jin. "I've been waiting for you. C'mon, let's go." She linked her arm around Zuko's and started walking to the end of the street. Zuko's head was spinning from all this. One minute, he was sitting in a chair getting his hair done, and the next, a girl he hardly knew is leading him away.

He glanced back one last time, and saw Iroh and Chiye waving to him, smiling.

ooooooooooo

"So…uh….you work at the teahouse with your uncle?" Jin asked.

"Um, yeah." Zuko responded, after which another long silence started.

The conversation had been like this ever since the two arrived. One would try to start a dialogue, and the other would find a way to somehow end it. As a young prince, Zuko was never forced to go on anything as mundane as a date. It was always assumed that a girl from some other kingdom would marry him in order to insure peace…or something like that. Right now, he almost preferred that.

"Excuse me, sir," the cheery waiter appeared and clapped his hands, "would your girlfriend like anything for dessert?"

"SHE IS NOT MY GIRLFRIEND!" Zuko shouted, slamming his fists on the table. Everyone in the restaurant turned to look at him, and he could feel his face turn colors as he sat down again, muttering "no thanks".

He looked toward Jin. She had started shifting her eyes, trying to avoid the stares from the other customers as she ate her noodles at a fast rate. Zuko immediately regretted his shouting. It was probably a little less than polite. The least he could do was strike up a conversation.

"You…uh…have a healthy appetite for a girl." Damn, he just couldn't think of something better to say, could he?

"I—I guess." Jin raised her eyebrow at him, questioningly.

Another long silence. These things were killing Zuko! It's not like he was horrible at talking to girls. He could strike up a conversation with Chiye without difficulty. So why was it so hard with Jin?

"…So, what did you do before you came to Ba Sing Se?" Jin asked, lowering her (empty) bowl of noodles.

Damn. If it wasn't an awkward silence, it was a hard question. "Umm...I—that is my uncle and I…traveled a lot," he found himself stuttering. It wasn't a complete lie, but it didn't exactly stop the questions.

"Oh?" Jin's face brightened. She had just found an interesting conversation, after all. "Why did you travel?"

Memories of Chiye came flooding back to Zuko. Didn't she ask the same questions a long time ago? Ugh, and he gave the stupidest answer, too. What was it?

"We were in a traveling circus," Zuko blurted. Damn it, no one would believe that! A stupid circus?! C'mon!

"Oh, what did you do? No, let me guess." Jin tapped her cheek thoughtfully. Zuko rolled his eyes. This girl was even more clueless than Chiye.

"You juggled!" She shouted triumphantly.

Juggled? She just couldn't stroke his ego at all and say that he was the strongman or the firemaster, now could she?

"Um…Yeah." Zuko crossed his arms and mentally rolled his eyes again. Whatever, he'd take any make-believe job as long as this conversation ended quickly.

"I've never seen juggling before!" Jin grabbed various items from the table—a saltshaker, one of the plates, a roll, and a glass of tea—and thrust them into Zuko's arms. Almost mechanically, Zuko accepted and threw each into the air. Bad idea—each one fell on top of his head, and he ended up drenched. This date was definitely a disaster.

Jin giggled. He had to admit, Jin's laugh was a lot like Chiye's. It was soft and sweet without any hint of ridicule…it was, well, cute.

Zuko's face started burning. "I'm just…uh…out of practice" he muttered.

Jin nodded, her smile never receding from her face. Her smile was a lot like Chiye's too.

"Hey," full lips parted, "I want to show you something."

Within a minute, Jin grabbed Zuko and started running, making Zuko stumble behind her. They ran through the dark alleys of the city, down the streets, even through some of the buildings.

"This is my favorite spot in the entire city," Jin shouted behind her to Zuko. "It's called the candlelight square, and when the torches are lit the light bounces off the water and makes the most beautiful glow!"

She finally slowed to a stop in the middle of a clearing. Zuko's eyes gazed over the area, there was a square, but no candles.

"…They didn't light the torches today" Jin looked at the ground disappointedly.

Even Jin's remorse looked like Chiye's. Granted, Jin didn't have the ivory skin that shone in the moonlight, nor the charcoal eyes that pierced anything they landed on, but she was beautiful nonetheless. A single lock of her frizzled hair had escaped from its confinement, and floated to Jin's face. The way that the moon shined on her face as she looked away in regret, and the way that her hair covered half of her face…

…she looked just like Chiye on the night when she and Zuko kissed.

"Close your eyes." Zuko ordered, "and don't open them."

After one quick confused stare up, Jin nodded and lowered her eyes, her hands rising to prove that she wasn't looking.

Zuko walked forward a couple of steps and assumed a stance. He glanced once over his shoulder—Jin hadn't moved. He breathed in deeply once, and with a sharp pierce of his arm, he summoned a small flame from the tip of his finger to fly across the square to one of the torches. He looked over his shoulder again. Jin hadn't reacted at all. Good. He repeated the motion several more times, lighting each torch quickly.

As he turned around to light the torches behind him, a small voice appeared in the back of his mind. 'Aren't you scared that you will be caught?' it said. Zuko ignored it. 'Aren't you afraid that someone else will find out?' the voice said louder. Zuko ignored it again. 'AREN'T YOU SCARED THAT SHE WILL DISCOVER YOU?'

Zuko stumbled, a flame headed not toward a torch, but toward an open window. Quickly, Zuko leaped into the air and threw a roundhouse kick. Fire erupted from his heel, and flew toward the tiny spark. Once the two flames met, each extinguished the other. Zuko sighed in relief—another mishap avoided just by the skin of his teeth.

"Okay, open your eyes." Zuko said, sighing with relief once more.

As soon as her hands left her face, Jin's face brightened and she gasped loudly. Zuko walked back to her side and turned around, looking at the scene. Jin was right—the glittering water seemed to contain thousands of fireflies as the light reflected from the surface.

Zuko looked at Jin. Her gaze was still transfixed on the spectacle, mesmerized by its beauty. The torches reflected on her face, making her skin glow warmly. The light also reflected in her eyes, making the green disappear only to be replaced by two gold orbs.

Her eyes floated in his direction. "It's beautiful," she breathed.

At the sound of her voice, Zuko felt his face flare. It was…SHE was beautiful. "I, uh, got you something." Zuko, averting his gaze quickly, thrust a hand into his pocket and removed two small strips of paper. "They're coupons," he said, recognizing her confusion, "Uncle says that you are a valuable customer."

Jin smiled and accepted the tickets, "Lee, you really didn't have to." She buried the gift into her purse, and looked up at Zuko again. "Now it's time that I gave you something. Close your eyes."

Zuko looked again at the girl. The light seemed to grow brighter in response to his feelings—his feelings of longing and happiness. Somehow, maybe because the fire had come from him, Zuko's feelings made Jin glow brighter in the torches. Her dark skin almost seemed white. And the light ricocheted against her bright eyes, making them seem no longer like golden orbs, but instead like deep, dark charcoal.

He closed his eyes. Immediately he felt her soft lips against his. Ultra-sensitive shockwaves vibrated throughout his entire body. When she retreated, so did the electric shock. Not wanting to lose the feeling, Zuko followed her retreat with his advance. His lips again came in contact with hers, and the feeling—that wonderful, terrible feeling—returned…exactly like what happened the previous night, in the moonlight, when she talked of destiny and forlornness.

Zuko backed away.

"What's wrong?" asked the dark skinned, green eyed girl.

Zuko turned around. "It's complicated," was all he said before he ran in the opposite direction.

---------------------------------------------------------------------

Chiye gasped at the sudden slamming of the front door. "Oh, Lee," she said, putting a hand over her chest to stifle her heart, "you surprised me. How was your—um—night?"

Without a word, Zuko walked past her and into his room.

There was no way that he could face Chiye tonight, after what he did.


	19. The Strangers

**Hey guys! okay, so this is a REALLY important chapter...or i guess kind of important :) youll see what i mean. i had a really good time writing it, too. oh, and this chapter is going to cause the story line to be kind of out of order. youll see what i mean; ill explain later. anyway, enjoy!!!!**

Fiery and Forbidden

"Two jasmines, one green," Chiye said, ringing the bell and placing a ticket order across the small window.

Iroh smiled, "just a minute." He turned around and put two teapots onto the fire while simultaneously pouring six cups of tea.

Chiye grabbed the cups, placed them on a tray, and walked off to give the customers their drinks. "Busy day, huh?" she said in passing to Zuko.

Not looking up from his table, Zuko grunted in recognition. Three days had passed since the date, and something had changed between Zuko and Chiye. He had almost stopped talking to her, and she couldn't stop trying to talk to him. As usual, when things finally work out for him, something goes wrong.

He bussed the table more fervently. It wasn't like he was mad at her for making him go on that stupid date with Jin—it was more than that. When he looked at Jin in the firelight, she had somehow changed into Chiye. When he kissed Jin, he wasn't kissing Jin. He was kissing Chiye. Zuko didn't know why, but there was something really wrong with that. Ever since then, he could barely look at Chiye.

But it was even more than that. Being on a date had reminded him of his past, when he never went on dates. It was expected that as a prince he would do great things, so there was no time for trivial events like dating. That was the way it was—the way that it was supposed to be. He was supposed to be ruling the fire nation, but now he was living in the poorest region of the Earth Kingdom. What had gone wrong?

He felt a small shove from behind. "Don't worry," Chiye winked playfully as she balanced another five glasses on a tray, "we only have about five more hours."

Zuko nodded solemnly and went back to his table. Chiye had been trying her hardest to get him to open up. He would bet money that she felt like he was mad at her. There was no truth in the thought, but he couldn't bring himself to tell her what had happened.

"This tea is delicious," an old man purred to Chiye.

"Oh," she said, smiling broadly, "thank you. It's all because of the head tea chef, Mushi." She pointed a finger toward the small window that revealed the kitchen.

Zuko rolled his eyes. Chiye was too innocent for her own good. She couldn't even tell when an old man was coming on to her.

"So you're the genius behind this incredible brew!" To Zuko's surprise, the man and the two people sitting with him immediately got up and walked into the kitchen. Zuko glanced at Chiye. She still had that dopey smile on her face, but her head was tilted in amused curiosity.

The old man patted Iroh on the shoulder. Having not noticed their entry into the kitchen, Iroh jumped and looked at the three men before him.

"How would you like your very own tea shop?" the man said, feeling as generous as if he had just granted Iroh's freedom.

"My own tea shop?" Iroh's eyes widened. Of course his greatest dream was to open a stupid tea shop. Zuko rolled his eyes again.

"Wait a minute. What are you trying to do, steal my employees?" their current employer appeared out of nowhere and stood defensively between Iroh and the old man.

Zuko sighed and walked to another abandoned table. This whole thing was stupid. Didn't his uncle used to be a great general? How come, all of a sudden, Iroh's only ambition was to open a tea shop? Zuko glanced at Chiye again. Typical, her face had broadened into an excited beam and she jumped up and down in enjoyment. So that was her greatest ambition too, was it? He scrubbed the tables mercilessly. Was he the only one that wanted something better out of life?

"Did you hear, nephew? This man wants to give us our own tea shop in the upper ring!" Iroh beamed.

Frustrated, Zuko threw his rag onto the table. "I'll try to contain my joy," he said stomping straight toward the door. Not wanting to see Chiye's expression, whether worried or sad or angry, he threw his eyes to the ground and pushed the door open.

Once outside, he walked to the side of the building (the place where the tea shop owner went to smoke his pipe) and leaned against the wall. Why couldn't they understand? Zuko used to have everything, but then he lost his honor. There had to be some way to go back to the way things were.

As if on cue, a small sheet of paper fluttered into Zuko's hand. Strange, Ba Sing Se was for the most part completely clean of litter. He looked at the paper nonchalantly.

His eyes widened as his grip on the paper tightened. On that tiny sheet of paper, a huge, furry mammal was painted. But it wasn't just any animal. It was a sky bison, and there was only one sky bison left in existence.

Zuko looked up, hoping to see the small boy riding through the air on his glider. Nowhere. Only blue skies. He ran to the other side of the building, scrambling up a fence in order to reach the rooftop. Once there, he glanced again at the sky. No one.

----------------------------------------------------

"What about the Blue Buffalo?"

"No, no, I don't like the sound. The Jasmine Dragon?"

Chiye nodded. "Not bad, but what about the Green Bear? We're in the Earth Kingdom—green, and the king has a pet bear."

Iroh shook his head. "It doesn't quite roll off the tongue."

Ever since the three men had presented Iroh with the offer, he had been brainstorming about his new store—the name, the style, the specials, everything. Though she had tried to help as much as possible, Chiye felt a little overwhelmed. All of a sudden, they had a brand new house (this would be their last day in the shack) with brand new opportunities. To make things worse, Zuko had been missing ever since he walked out of the tea shop.

Suddenly, the door slammed open. Speak of the devil.

"Lee, welcome back. We were just—"

"Chiye," Zuko barked, "out. I need to talk to Uncle alone."

The girl froze for a minute, taken aback by Zuko's brashness. Iroh, however, was used to his nephew's rudeness. He nodded to Chiye, "don't worry, we will continue this conversation later. In the mean time, why don't you go out and buy something pretty for the new apartment?"

Chiye looked from Iroh's pleasant face to Zuko's arrogant one. Deciding not to start a fight, she rose slowly. "You're right," she said, "I'll just…leave for right now." She gave a quick nod to both Iroh and Zuko, and walked out the door.

**Authors note: I've tried to keep the story mostly in third person, Zuko POV, but I'm going to change it at least for right now. Important plot details that don't involve him, you see…**

Chiye walked through the marketplace, glancing over the various products that each stall had to offer. She had no idea what was going on, but it seemed that Lee may start a fight with his uncle. Nowadays, confrontation scared her, so she should probably be happy that she left. But still…

It would also have helped to know what kind of thing Mushi wanted her to buy. There were paintings, vases, instruments, candles—pretty much anything that his heart could desire.

She browsed over the stalls, looking through the vases. Then she heard voices behind her.

"But Appa is enormous, and sky bisons don't just disappear. Someone had to have seen him."

"Katara, there's something going on in this city. It's not just Appa, either, the Dai Lee is after something."

The first voice sighed, "We know that, Sokka, but it doesn't hurt to put a few posters around."

Chiye turned her focus back to the vases. It was pretty rude to listen into someone else's conversation. They were all beautiful, but so expensive—the vases, I mean. Their former boss didn't pay them too well, and Chiye had forgotten to grab more money at the shack. She walked toward the back of the store, where the smaller vases were.

"But you saw how Joo Dee reacted when she found the poster. I think we need to stop and regroup. There are other ways of finding him."

Oh, the two poster people had followed her into the shop. But it was none of her business—she had to find something nice for the apartment. The small vases were more in her price range, and they were definitely pretty. The problem was that the ones at the bottom were all cracked. The ones at the top, though…

Then she saw it. The vase that would be perfect. It was small, no taller than the length of her hand, but it was gorgeous. White with a single, tiny red flower on it. But so high up…

She reached for it, but she was too short. Just a little farther. Her back stretch as far as it could, and her arm felt like it was about to pop out of its socket. She hopped slightly, but it was no good. So high up…

A dark, calloused hand reached above her head and easily extracted the vase from its shelf. Chiye turned around gratefully to the stranger…strangers. They looked like a brother and sister—siblings from the water tribe. Chiye had never seen water tribesmen before. They had deep, dark skin and brown hair. Completely different from her contrasting pale skin and black hair. The striking thing was their brilliant blue eyes.

"Were you reaching for this?" the brother said to her. She was speechless for a minute, those blue eyes seemed to pierce straight through her. She'd never seen anything like it.

"Umm—Yes! Thank you." She said gratefully, taking the vase from his hand. The boy was about her age, although slightly taller. His hair was pulled into an exotic wolf-tail, and his clothes were of the deepest blue. His sister had similar clothing, but she seemed just a little younger than her brother. Strapped to her waist was a gourd. A waterbender? Chiye's eyes switched back to the boy. What about him? No gourd, but there was a very strange instrument strapped to his back.

Seeing her eyeing his weapon questioningly, the boy pulled the tool from his back. It was a long piece of metal, but it was bent.

"It's a boomerang." The boy said.

Chiye tilted her head to the side. "A boomrang?"

He smiled, "No, a boomERang. Here let me show you." The boy grabbed Chiye's hand and led her toward the outside.

"Sokka, don't. We've got to put these posters up!" his sister objected.

So they were the people she had overheard earlier. Why did watertribesmen have a sky bison?

The boy didn't turn around. "It'll just take a second." Once outside, the boy named Sokka turned around and held his index finger up. "So here's what you do. You throw it."

He said it as if this was the most ingenious invention ever created. Not wanting to disappoint him, Chiye shakily smiled, "You…throw it?"

"Yeah, watch." The boy turned toward the street. Making sure that there weren't too many people around, he lifted the boomerang into the air and threw it as hard as he could. The instrument spiraled as it flew threw the air, slowing down. When it had stopped, mid-flight, the boomerang returned.

Chiye gasped. "That's amazing!" she said, clapping her hands delightedly.

The boy turned to her and folded his arms, "That's watertribe ingenuity for y—"

The boomerang worked too well. When it returned, and when no one was prepared to catch it, the metal crashed straight into Sokka's head, completely knocking him over.

With a loud groan, he clutched his head as his sister sighed and rolled her eyes.

Chiye laughed and picked up the boomerang. "Very impressive," she said, passing it back to the boy. "Remind me to be careful around 'watertribe ingenuity'."

The boy blushed as he put the boomerang into its case on his back. Poor guy, he wanted to do something impressive, but it came back and slapped him in the face…or hit him in the head.

"My name's Chiye," she said.

The girl smiled and nodded. "I'm Katara," she said, "and this," she elbowed the boy, "is my brother, Sokka."

Chiye grinned. "Nice to meet you both. And thanks for the demonstration," she said, nodding to Sokka.

"You don't look like you're from around here. Where are you from?" Katara asked.

Chiye paused for a minute. This girl was perceptive, she had noticed Chiye's pale skin and black eyes. No one in the Earth Kingdom had that. The faint memory of her DISMISSED FIRENATION SOLDIER collar flashed in her mind. Even as she thought this, she inconspicuously slipped her hand into her pocket and touched the trinket.

"I've…ah…been traveling for a while. I've only just arrived in Ba Sing Se. But—But what about you two? Watertribe?"

She hated lying like this. It felt like she was betraying the people that she had wronged—like she was cheating her way out of just punishment. But it was necessary…at least for Lee and Mushi's sake.

The brother and sister nodded. "We just got here, too," Sokka said, "but we're living in the upper ring."

Chiye gasped, "we're going to move there soon. My friend is about to open a tea house there."

Sokka raised an eyebrow. "your friend?"

"Yeah," Chiye nodded enthusiastically, "I'm living with my friends, Lee and Mushi. Our luck recently changed, and we're getting a new apartment in the upper ring. That's why I'm out looking for a vase—"

As Chiye held her little vase up, she realized that she hadn't paid for it yet. When Sokka led her out, Chiye was too wrapped up in his strange boomerang to remember to drop the vase.

"Oh, I…uh…didn't pay for it…" Chiye blushed deeply. "I need to go pay for it, but I'll see you two later, okay?"

The siblings nodded and waved goodbye as she walked away.

"She was cute wasn't she?" Katara whispered, elbowing Sokka in the side.

With only a quick glance at his sister, Sokka watched the pale beauty walk away. Cute didn't even come close to describing her.


	20. The Dream

**Back again, guys! pay attention now, this chapter takes place at the time when Zuko and Iroh come back from Lake Laogai. i reaaaally didn't want to detail what happened there, and i assume that everyone knows what happened anyway. if you don't, then go to wikipedia and look up the episode list. it gives a synopsis...**

**moving on...this chapter will start in 3rd person, Chiye's POV. enjoy!!!**

Two days. It had been two days since Chiye had last seen Lee or Mushi. Well, more specifically, it had been a day, a night, and another day. The whole time, there was no tea shop to work at, and no strange stains to clean now that they had moved to the upper ring. Not willing to work on ideas for Mushi's tea house alone, she spent the days staring out the window.

It wasn't even the boredom that was unnerving. When she had arrived back at the shack, Mushi and Lee seemed to suddenly stop midsentence, as if they had been saying something that they didn't want her to hear. Who knows what they had been talking about. The rest of the night, Lee didn't even make eye contact with Chiye, and Mushi remained in a thoughtful silence. The next morning, Lee had completely disappeared and Mushi left a note saying that he was looking for his nephew.

She must have done something wrong. The weird silences, the boys not speaking to her, what else could it be?

Chiye sighed heavily. She shouldn't have forced Lee to go on that date with Jin. It was her own selfishness that made him do it. She had forgotten where her place was in society. She was the treasonous soldier of the fire nation. She could face neither the Fire Nation nor the Earth Kingdom. If it wasn't for her fear of hurting Lee or Mushi, she would put her collar back onto her neck and begin again as a wanderer. After all, she didn't deserve forgiveness.

The broad, oak doors slammed open, shocking Chiye back into reality. Turning away from the window, she met the familiar faces of Lee and Mushi.

Her face broadened into the first smile in two days. "Welcome home, you two."

Lee looked straight at her. Not to the floor, not to the walls, but to her face. For the first time in who knows how long, Lee met her eyes with his own. They were gold. Why hadn't she noticed until now?

He smiled (he smiled!). "It's good to be back—"

Less than a single shaky step forward, Lee fell straight to the floor. Mushi and Chiye immediately leapt up, but Chiye was quicker.

"Lee?! Lee! Get up!" she kneeled next to him, shaking his shoulder lightly. "Please, get up!" her heart beat one hundred miles a second, and her hands started shaking. "What's wrong, Lee? Wake up!" but his eyes remained closed and his forehead became feverish.

"Quickly," Mushi kneeled next to her, "grab a cold washcloth and help me get him into a bed!"

-------------------------------------

**Back to Zuko's POV (3****rd**** person of course)**

Zuko's eyes opened, although it was painful to do so. He groaned deeply. Zuko's head was spinning, he felt both hot and cold at the same time, and every muscle in his body felt weak. And yet, this didn't compare to the strange things running through his drowsy mind.

"Here, Prince Zuko," his uncle's deep soothing voice said, "this will make you feel better." Iroh removed a soaked strip of cloth from a bucket and placed it over Zuko's forehead.

"Wha—what happened?" Zuko said weakly.

Iroh smiled. "you are going through a metamorphosis," he said, "what you did beneath Lake Laogai was in such conflict with your own self-image, that you are now at war within your mind and body."

Zuko's mind struggled to wrap itself around the things that his uncle was telling him. A fit of coughing interrupted his thoughts, though, and was forced to turn away.

The front door burst open suddenly. "How is he?" Chiye's soft, panicked voice reached Zuko's ears.

Iroh nodded. "Not in good shape right now. It will be a struggle, but he will get much better in due time."

Zuko saw Chiye's feet walk toward the window. "I'm glad to hear that. Is there anything that I can do?"

"No, you've done enough," Iroh said, "But what are those for?"

Zuko breathed deeply and struggled to lift his head enough to see what his uncle was referring to. He didn't see much, only Chiye's back as she tended to something near the window.

"Someone told me once that flowers could lighten someone's spirits," she said, trying to arrange the white flowers, "and since you said that it wasn't an ordinary illness, I thought that this may do something."

Iroh laughed lightly. "The only thing that my nephew needs right now is sleep. I don't think that flowers will help."

Chiye was silent for a minute, pondering the words. "I think it was a mistake to get white flowers," she said decidedly. "I'm going to go get red ones." Without another word, she shuffled back to the other side of the room and walked out the door.

Iroh watched as she left, smiling and shaking his head. "She's worried about you, Prince Zuko," he said.

Zuko turned to the side and coughed again. No matter how hard he tried, his mind was too weary to comprehend the situation. Something about flowers…and Chiye…and…

_Zuko was sitting in the middle of the palace's grand hall. Thousands of faceless soldiers were bowing to him, but he didn't care. He was the fire lord—ruler of the world. Everyone was to bow to his presence as he sat atop the grand pedestal._

"_You must be tired, Fire Lord Zuko." His sister's voice—no, the voice of the blue dragon. The large serpentine reptile wound itself around Zuko's canopy. "Will you retire soon?"_

_Zuko regarded the dragon as he did the lowest peasants—with distaste. "I'm not tired."_

_The blue dragon stopped its winding. "Relax," it said soothingly, "just give in. Go ahead, rest your eyes for a while."_

"_No!" his uncle—the red dragon shouted, similarly winding itself around another pillar, "Do not listen to the blue dragon! You should get out of here right now. Go! Before it's too late!"_

"_Sleep now, Fire Lord Zuko," the Blue Dragon soothed, "Sleep. Just like mother!"_

_The voice became sinister, and the Blue Dragon raised itself, ready to strike._

_Zuko felt something around his arm. He looked down at his right hand, and saw a tiny golden snake wound around his wrist. The little snake made its way up his arm, moving gracefully, unhindered by Zuko's grand firelord armor. The golden snake—no, a golden dragon—slithered around his neck and brushed against his cheek._

_Rising to look in his eyes, the tiny dragon spoke soothingly, without a hint of sinister intent. "Will this really make you happy?" It asked._

_Zuko stared into the dragon's eyes and found himself speechless. Immediately, the ground around him started cracking and falling apart. The soldiers that bowed before him disappeared and left only a dismal, black abyss. Zuko looked back to his shoulder. The golden dragon had disappeared! Searching for the tiny lizard, Zuko looked to the ground around him. Nothing…nowhere. The ground continued to crumble around him. He screamed only once before the very pedestal that had supported him crumbled and engulfed him into the darkness._

Zuko jolted out of his sleep. Cold sweat ran down his face, and his heart was beating rapidly. He pressed against his chest, trying to stifle the rapid beating. The room was empty. Chiye and Iroh must have left.

He threw the sheets off him and walked into the restroom. Filling up the sink, he splashed cold water over his face. What kind of dream was that? Dragons, and firelords, and danger, but what did it mean?

Zuko grabbed a towel that was hanging against the wall and dabbed his face. What was going on? Did the dream have something to do with his 'metamorphosis'? He threw the towel on the floor and turned to walk out the door. This was so complicated, he thought as he ran a hand through his hair.

His hair? Where was his hair? He moved his hands to his face. And his scar? It was gone? He ran back into the bathroom as fast as he could and looked in the mirror. A loud surprised shout escaped his lips as he stared in horror at his own relfection. The scar was completely gone, and he was bald, but the scary thing was that he had a sky blue tattoo of an arrow over his scalp.

Zuko jolted out of his sleep, again. Another dream? He raised his hand to feel his scar. Still there. Good. He looked around the room. For some reason, there were hundreds of flowers paving the floor and piling up in the corners of the room. He almost didn't see Iroh sleeping against one of the walls because he was knee deep in red roses. His eyes searched the room further. Where was Chiye? He threw the sheets off of him and looked around.

Then he found her. In the farthest corner of the room, surrounded by white flowers. Her creative mind had even weaved a crown of daisies, which she had placed on her head. Zuko smiled. The flowers suited her. Actually, everything suited her…Anything with beauty, at least…A flower among flowers.

Zuko's eyelids drooped lazily. He was still sick, and his uncle (if he were awake) would have advised him to sleep more. He drew the sheets around him again, lying down.

The last thought that passed through his mind?

"Goodnight, my golden dragon."


	21. The Jasmine Dragon

**hey i'm back again. so thanksgiving break is ending, and i feel like i havent vacationed at all. too many damn projects. but i did have a pretty good time otherwise. i mentioned this in my other story, but i gotta ask. has anyone out there seen the fullmetal alchemist movie? it was so fuckin awesom!!!!!**

**anyway, im gonna do something new. maybe ill continue it maybe i wont, but here goes...online responses to reviews :D**

**Marshmalu: **haha you were the first to send me a comment :D thanks for the compliment, and i generally try to update once a week. usually fridays or saturdays...

**FireChildSlytherin5 & aniek90:** sorry i grouped yall together, but your reviews were practically word for word the same. not that that's bad, i thought it was kinda cool :-) anyway, thanks for the reviews you two. it makes me happy on the inside

**fennecfox03:** funny you should say that. i just finished this story over the break, and i somehow got the chapters up to 24. 25 including authors note, but you know...i'm gonna be kinda sad when its gone, but then again i have the sequel to do too :D

**Cows are my friends:** ok, first of all, your name made me LITRALLY lol. cows are my friends, too :) also, great idea! i honestly would use it if i hadn't already said that Chiye had never seen a waterbender before. i know, i could ignore what i said earlier, but i decided not to. still tho, great idea

**ok, peeps. if you want your names on the story, then yall review. i honestly dont care what you say. i even accept flames, but i might cuss you out on the story. it would push my rating up to M, but it would totally be worth it -.-'**

Fiery and Forbidden

Sunlight was streaming through the windows when Zuko awakened. It wasn't the normal, painful, annoying sunshine, either. This time, it felt…good.

He sat up and looked around. Iroh and Chiye had already left. What time was it? Did they already leave for the grand opening of the _Jasmine Dragon_? Zuko laughed inwardly at the name. It was so ridiculous, but it described his uncle pretty well.

Rubbing his eye once, Zuko lifted himself from the bed and walked into the kitchen. Two eager faces turned to him. One belonged to his uncle, who was stirring a pot of strange white porridge. The other, Chiye's, looked at him with tired, hopeful eyes.

"What are you making, uncle?" he asked, putting an end to the silence.

Iroh turned back to the porridge, "It's jook. But you wouldn't like it."

Zuko strolled over to the pot and breathed in the scent deeply. "It smells delicious," Zuko picked up a small bowl, "I'd like to try some."

The old man turned sharply to Zuko, a look of surprise written on his face. Nevertheless, Iroh took the bowl from Zuko and poured the white paste into the bowl. "You have changed greatly, my nephew," Iroh said, stirring the pot a few more times.

Zuko walked back to the table with his bowl. "It's a new day, Uncle. We have a brand new apartment, and the grand opening of your restaurant is today."

Chiye smiled at him wearily, "I'm glad to see you in such a good mood."

The young prince set the bowl onto the table and sat in the chair closest to her. A wild thought suddenly flew through his mind. He didn't know where it came from, or what brought it about, but he leaned toward Chiye and, gently grabbing her chin in his hand, kissed her lightly. It was the merest shred of doubt—or terror—that made him kiss her on the cheek instead of on her rosy lips.

The raven-haired maiden jumped back, blushing madly and touching her cheek. She didn't speak; she simply looked at Zuko with a mix of surprise and confusion in her eyes.

Zuko smiled. "I'm sorry. I just wanted to thank you for being so worried about me. And besides—" he leaned toward her playfully, "you look beautiful today."

This time, Chiye really did jump out of her seat, knocking the chair over in the process. Iroh looked up from the jook. "What's wrong?" he asked, completely oblivious to what had just happened.

"I…I…" Chiye stuttered, her hand still touching her flushed cheek, "I…I'm not hungry!" She immediately sprinted out of the room and, wrenching the front door open, fled outside.

Iroh looked startlingly from Zuko to the empty front door. "What just happened?" He asked, blowing out the fire that was heating the porridge.

Zuko rose from his seat gracefully. "Nothing, just go back to your jook. I'll make sure to get to the tea house before it opens." He waved goodbye and left before Iroh had a chance to object.

------------------------------------------------------------------

It didn't take long to find Chiye—she hadn't strayed far. When he found her, she was still blushing lightly.

Zuko gently touched her shoulder. "What's wrong?" he asked soothingly.

She looked up at him, her dark eyes flashing gold in the sun. For a minute, she didn't speak. She just looked up at him, as if trying to figure him out. She took a deep breath and sighed. "…I don't know."

Zuko leaned against a building, folding his arms behind his head and looking up. "You know we're not doing anything wrong, right?"

Her lips pursed together lightly as her gaze sunk to the ground. Zuko dropped his arms and looked straight into her face. "—Because we're not," he finished.

She looked up again, into his eyes. She opened her mouth to speak, but her lips closed again as she rethought what she was about to say.

Zuko placed his hands on his hips, not taking his eyes away from hers. "Look," he said, "I don't know if you're still hung up about the whole fire nation thing, but just forget it. You ran away from the army. That's the end of it. And if you're worried about what my uncle and I think, then don't. I don't care where you came from or what you did. Ever since I first met you, you were the kindest, gentlest, most generous person I've ever seen."

She blushed lightly at the comment. She wasn't used to getting such compliments. Zuko smiled and turned around, toward the path that led to the _Jasmine Dragon_. "I can understand if you need time to think things over, but I just wanted you to hear that. And—" he half-turned back to her, "I wanted to ask you to go to dinner with me sometime."

Chiye felt her face flush again—harder than she had ever blushed in her life. The greatest relationship that she had ever had was her various sparring partners during the boot camp training. And now, Lee was asking her…on a _date_.

Zuko turned back around, "It's okay if you don't want to. I just wanted to ask." He started walking away. "Anyway, we need to go. The grand opening is going to start soon."

Chiye, still blushing wildly, stepped forward gingerly. It was so much information to take in at once. She still didn't even know her true feelings for Lee, anyway. It was going to take time to sort through everything.

--------------------------------

The grand opening was a great success. Since the doors first opened, rich looking customers had been streaming in. Luckily, the staff for the _Jasmine Dragon_ was bigger than three people. Iroh, naturally was the owner/head tea maker, Chiye was promoted to hostess, and Zuko was working in the kitchen under Iroh. It still wasn't his dream job, but at least he wasn't bussing tables anymore.

And he didn't have to wear that stupid uniform anymore, either. Iroh graciously allowed Zuko to wear anything he wanted, as long as put on a simple smock. After all, appearances didn't really matter in the kitchen. Iroh did, however, make a simple uniform for the waiters, waitresses, and hostess. No longer was Chiye wearing a provocative short skirt—she had a long, simple, elegant dress.

Perhaps to gain more business, or perhaps as a nod to tradition, however, Iroh designed a long slit along each side of Chiye's dress. It wasn't enough to be completely inappropriate, but it was enough to turn heads.

The building couldn't have been more perfect. Iroh's patron had somehow managed to obtain a beautiful, large building in the center of a very popular square. To add just one more embellishment, the patron ordered a large, golden dragon to be made so that its body wrapped around two pillars at the entrance to the tea house. Iroh couldn't have been giddier when he saw it—his delight carried on throughout the entire day. Even during closing, Iroh mopped the floors with a big, goofy grin on his face.

And that grin widened when an official-looking messenger appeared.

He was a dumpy man, apparently humorless. He opened a scroll with a grand motion and cleared his throat loudly. "A message from the Earth King," he nearly shouted, "Because your new tea shop has stirred such a great following on its first day, the Earth King has asked your presence in three days time at the palace. You will have the honor of serving him your best tea. That is all." The man closed the scroll that he was reading from and bowed low. Then, just as suddenly as he had arrived, he was gone.

Zuko's eyes widened, and he turned to Iroh. He had the same expression of astonishment, and for a minute he didn't even move. Then, as if in an instant, his face widened broadly—broader than seemed possible—and tears welled in his eyes.

"I cannot believe this," he said, wiping the tears from his eyes with the back of his sleeve. "This is (sniff) the greatest honor that I have (sniff) ever been given."

Chiye walked over and embraced Iroh. "I'm so happy for you," she said, smiling.

Zuko likewise clapped Iroh on the back. "Good for you!" he beamed.

Chiye bounced on her heels. "I'm so excited! In three days, we'll be serving tea to the Earth King at the palace—oh." Her face suddenly fell slightly. "What about the _Jasmine Dragon_?"

Iroh's watery eyes turned to her. "Don't be silly, we can close it for the day."

"But it's only the fourth day—on a _Saturday_. It could be very bad for business if we close it."

Zuko shrugged, "then we'll get one of the staff to fill in."

The raven haired maiden shook her head, "They're brand new. We can't leave the shop just to them. No, no, I'll stay here and you two can go to the palace."

Iroh raised his eyebrow. She did have a very good point, but why was she so eager to avoid the palace? "Are you absolutely sure? We can figure out a way to make this work if you want to go."

Again, Chiye shook her head and waived her arm in decline, "It's okay. I'm happy to stay and run the place." To show that she wasn't faking, she tilted her head and smiled pleasantly.

She didn't fool Zuko. She was hiding something—she had some sort of reservation about the palace. And he had a feeling that he knew what it was.

But he wasn't going to call her on it. He had already admitted his feelings, and she was doubtless still struggling with her own feelings. It was only fair to leave her alone for now.


	22. Avoidance

**hey guys! back again. ok, lets start with the reviews, shall we?**

**FireChildSlytherin5: thanks!! and youll just have to wait to find out!! i think there should be either three or four or five more chapters to go until the finale**

**fennecfox03: yup, yup. sequel. exciting. i thought of a name, too. im thinking "earthen and mistaken". earthen is actually a word...go figure.**

**Marshmalu: ya, i know. this chapter has a little more going on with it. i havent really looked at the other chapters in a while, but i think not much happens until the finale -.-' ohh well**

**Cows are my friends: i know, i know, but i just wont. dont worry, itll be a good story even without that :) and if i really feel hard pressed for content, maybe i will add your idea into the sequel **

**ehsurewhatever: haha, thanks. still more chapters to go. i think this story ends with about 25 chapters. and this is...what, 20? 21? i cant remember -.-'**

**aniek90: hahaa, ya, that was original :D and i KNOW!!! he should tell her!!! as i wrote this, the thought crossed my mind that i really should make him tell her...but that would just ruin the dramatic irony of it all :)**

**jenn: haha, u keep reviewing, and ill keep writing :)) thanks for noticing, btw. i really work hard in order to follow the storyline as much as possible so that none of the characters become OOC. **

**so in other news...oh! ive got to say this. AUTHORS NOTE!!! im making a major change in the usual script. after zuko wakes up from his sickness, its only like, what, a couple of days until he meets the earth king? and all the while, the gaang are fighting to see the earth king and then they split up, etc. in my story, the gaang knows the earth kingg by this point, but they havent split up. they wont split up at all, in fact. so just keep that in mind. OH, and i just saw the Day of Black Sun special...i seriously cannot wait until Zuko catches up to the gaang!! i wonder what will happen...and i wonder whether aang and katara will finally get together. i really hope so, their little love relationship has taken way to long (like im one to talk...25 frickin chapters of angst...)**

**anyway, heres the story!!!!!**

Chiye walked slowly through the crowded streets of Ba Sing Se's marketplace. Last night, after congratulating Iroh for his honor, she had volunteered to stay at the _Jasmine Dragon_ late to close up. When she went back to the apartment, Lee was still awake, waiting for her even though it had to be way past midnight. Even so, she had excused herself quickly, saying that she was tired.

In the morning, she woke up at about dawn and wrote a note:

_Boys,_

_Sorry to leave so early. I remembered how popular the jasmine tea was, so I decided to go out and buy some more leaves for today's service. I'll try to pick up something nice for the apartment too, while I'm at it._

_I'll be back before opening,_

_Chiye_

But she had lied, of course. The shop wasn't low on tea, and the apartment was beautiful enough without anymore decoration. The main reason that she left was to avoid Lee for as long as possible.

It was the strangest thing. He had suddenly come upon a terrible sickness, seemingly from nowhere. All night, he had sweated and thrashed in the bed. He must have been having horrible nightmares too, because he would occasionally murmur strange things in his sleep. Chiye had worried so much that she had barely gotten any sleep.

And then, the next morning, he seemed completely revitalized—even better than before, even. Lee was stronger and more…well, chipper. It wasn't like his usual self, but it wasn't unlike him either. In fact, it was kind of a relief to see him in such high spirits.

And then…then he started flirting with her. What was that about? And it was just after she had pledged to remain in her place—to not forget the people that she had wronged. How was she supposed to choose between him and her own duty?

A decision like this wouldn't be resolved immediately. She would have to think it over carefully. At the very least, the sun was shining, and the walk through the market was exciting.

"Chiye? Hey, Chiye!"

Someone was calling her? It sounded familiar, but she didn't recognize it until she turned around. "Sokka? Hey, long time no see!" she shouted, waving to the Watertribesman.

The dark boy came to a halt in front of her. He must have been running to catch up to her, because he started panting heavily. "Yeah (huff) it has been (huff) a while," he said, putting his hands on his knees and leaning over to catch his breath.

Chiye laughed lightly. "How's Katara been?" she asked once Sokka had caught his breath.

"Good," Sokka nodded, "A lot of things have been happening though."

"Oh?" Chiye cocked her head to the side, "like what?"

His blue eyes darted away for a split second, showing his reluctance to speak. But they returned back to her face as Sokka shrugged. "Just a lot of things," he said, "you shouldn't worry about it. But anyway, there's some people that I want you to meet. Could you," he scratched the back of his neck and looked away as a slight blush crept across his face, "Could you come to my place for dinner tonight?"

Chiye blushed slightly and glanced down. She did want to get to know Sokka and Katara, but she would have to skip out on work. That wasn't very polite. Then again, it would give her one night more to collect her thoughts about Lee.

"Okay," she nodded, "I'd love to."

"Really?" Sokka looked up, "Oh, I, uh…I mean, great! Let me give you the directions."

Although Chiye was smiling as he wrote an address on a scrap of paper, she was just as mixed up as she had ever been.

------------------------------------

"So, is it okay if I leave early today?" Chiye asked Iroh, clasping her hands together.

The old man raised an eyebrow. "Who did you say you were going to see?"

"A watertribesman, Sokka. I'm sure they would like to meet you too, if you want to come."

Iroh shook his head, a little too fervently, "No, no. It—uh—it would be very rude for us to show up uninvited. Besides, I've got to look after the shop." He glanced across the room at Zuko, "And I need my nephew's help, too. But you have a good time."

Chiye's face dropped a little, but she nodded. "Alright, I'll be back later." With only a quick nod to Iroh, she started for the door.

"Hold on," A hand grabbed her arm. She turned around to face Zuko.

"Where are you going?" he asked, piercing her eyes with his gaze.

"Umm," she looked down, if for no other reason than to avoid his poignant eyes, "I met some people in town and they invited me over for dinner."

"When will you be back?" he said, neither warmly nor coldly.

"I—I don't know." Her voice was shakey. He must have noticed, because he led her quietly out the door. He didn't stop in the street, either, but walked around to the back of the tea house.

Once there, he let go of her arm, but didn't turn around. Instead, he just leaned against the wall. "What's wrong?" he asked quietly, folding his arms.

That was it. The question that she had been trying to figure out herself. The one that she couldn't answer. So she didn't speak, but merely looked down.

Zuko glanced sideways at her and sighed heavily. "Okay, I get it. You need more time." The girl nodded silently. "Could you at least do me a favor?" he asked, turning to look straight into her face.

Chiye finally looked up. "Sure," she breathed, relived that he understood.

"Stop trying to avoid me." Zuko said with a half-grin.

It was funny. Chiye both blushed and smiled at the same time. "Sorry…I mean, of course."

Were his eyes always this gold?

Her blush deepened as she thought this. Was he always this charming? Her face turned darker. And this handsome? Darker—her whole head was on fire.

"I—uh—I'll see you later, I'm going to be late." She flashed an awkward smile and ran off, turning back only once for a quick wave. She hoped that he didn't see how red her face was.

--------------------------------------------------------------

Apparently, Chiye had been living in the low-class housing in the upper ring. She checked the scrap of paper again. Yes, this really was the address that Sokka had given her. But the place was huge!

She tentatively knocked on the door, quietly at first, but then harder. Voices erupted from within.

"Is that her?" a male voice asked. It was a little higher than Sokka's, which she guessed meant that he was a little younger.

"Well it's one person, the dead of night, at the time that Sokka said that she was coming so…yeah, I'd say that it'd be her." A female voice, but not Katara's. It sounded less fluid than hers, but more gravelly.

"You invited her, go get her." Katara's voice said, followed by a loud _thunk_.

"Oww! Okay, I'm going." Sokka said, walking toward the door.

As he opened the door, Chiye noticed something a little different about him. It wasn't anything big, but it had something to do with the details. His hair was pulled back a little more neatly, his nails were cleaned a little more carefully, things like that.

"Glad you could make it," he said, making his voice a little lower than usual.

Chiye grinned. "Glad you invited me," she said, ignoring Sokka's obvious attempts to seem manlier.

She stepped through the threshold at his beckoning and took in the view. Yes, this was definitely nicer than her apartment. It was more finely furnished—obviously by a professional.

Chiye turned her eyes to the other people in the room. Katara sat at the small table. She seemed just like Chiye had remembered her—pretty and exotic. At the other corner of the room was another young girl. She was definitely of Earth Kingdom descent, however her eyes weren't green. On the other hand, they were too clear to be from any other nation. She must have been blind. Finally, most intriguing of all, a young boy was sitting at the table with Katara. Chiye had thought that the Watertribesmen looked exotic—this boy seemed like something out of a history book. He had strange orange clothes, and his head was completely shaved. Not to mention he had bright blue tattoos running all along his body.

"Hey!" he said brightly, snapping Chiye out of her daze.

She blinked twice, and then smiled, "Hi. I'm Chiye."

"Aang. And if you hadn't guessed," he pointed to the arrow tattoo on his head, "I'm the avatar."

The smile on Chiye's face faded for a minute as the comment sunk in. But then it broadened again, "That's really funny. But isn't it a little weird to make a joke like that to a stranger all of a sudden."

"I-It's not a joke," he said, smile fading slightly and eyebrows construing confusedly. He turned to Katara with a 'help me' look on his face.

"No, he really is the avatar." Katara said reasonably.

"You two really shouldn't talk like that, someone might take you seriously," Chiye said, ignoring both the boy and Katara. "The avatar died a long time ago, after all."

Katara turned to her brother, mimicking the expression that Aang had given her.

He grabbed Chiye's arm and looked straight into her eyes. "Really," he said, "Aang is the avatar. He was buried under ice for a hundred years, but now he's back."

Chiye looked into his eyes, searching for any hint of ridicule. She didn't find any—only a sea of blue honesty. "The avatar…" she breathed, "is alive?"

Everyone in the room nodded grimly. Chiye looked around again. No one had burst out laughing—it must really not have been a joke. She looked at Aang again, with new eyes. Suddenly, his strange clothes made sense. The grey eyes, the tattoos, the wooden relic at his side (a glider?), all added to his strange aura of ancient mysticism.

Chiye felt tears welling in her eyes. This meant that the war may end. This meant that she wouldn't be tortured anymore by guilt. This meant an end to the evil in the world and in herself. It was all too overwhelming. Trying to keep herself together, she covered her mouth with her hand. It didn't help—she sunk to her knees, facing the floor and started sobbing.

Everyone in the room rushed to help her. She felt Sokka's calloused hands on her shoulder, and his voice asking what was wrong, but it all seemed so far away. Chiye was soaring somewhere else, in a place foreign to her. It was a place where her hopes lied, and where her wildest dreams took place. Everything bad would be over, because the avatar had survived!

She gasped and sat back up on her heels. "I'm sorry," she whispered, still half sobbing but trying to wipe the tears away nonetheless, "I just…I just never thought that it could happen." She smiled at the people around her, "It just seems too good to be true."

Aang brushed the back of his neck, embarrassed. "We get that reaction occasionally," he chuckled, "it just usually comes from people who have really close connection to the war."

If there was anything that could make Chiye stop crying, Aang said it. Her tears dried up immediately, and raised her sleeve to her face in order to hide any surprise that her face showed. "It—It's been an interesting dinner already," she said into her sleeve, "and it's only been a few minutes."


	23. Sokka and Chiye Alone

**Another week, another chapter. lets start with the reviews, shall we?**

**Cows are my friends: Zhou killed Sokka's mom O.O?? i totally didn't even realize. did i miss something???**

**jenn: haha ya, a little too much angst probably -.-'**

**RueBroadway: thankx!! i gotta say, i think that was the first time that i actually put in a hint that Chiye may feel shy or whatever about Zuko. i feel kinda sorry because i keep making Zuko so shy and embarassed.**

**fennecfox03: i know, i cant wait to see how the gaang reacts to zuko showing up all of a sudden cant wait for next week. o, and i cant wait to see what the western air temple is like!! i found out somewhere that its a group of all women**

**ehsurewhatever: hahahhahaha!!!! poor suki!!!!!!! just as a side note, suki does exist, but sokka's not all that into her . **

**the provalone: keep reading to find out **

**aniek90: OMG I totally forgot to add that in!!! (see below note :) )**

**IMPORTANT AUTHORS NOOOTTEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ok, aniek90 pointed this out to me, and i forgot to add it in. chiye didn't know that the avatar was alive because she was in the war while the whole search for the avatar was going on. after she left the army, she didn't really associate with anyone so she was never told, she didn't stay in a town long enough to notice wanted posters, and Zuko and Iroh never brought it up. ill try to add that bit into a later chapter, just for the people who dont read authors notes :P**

**ok, on to the story!!!**

"Are you sure you need to leave so soon?" the blind earthbender asked, folder her arms behind her head.

Chiye nodded. "It's almost midnight. Mushi and Lee will be worried if I stay out any longer."

Katara clasped Chiye's hands in her own. "Just be sure to come again, it was fun."

"Yes, it was…and I will," she said, grinning.

It had been a short dinner, but Chiye had grown close to the avatar and his friends. Conversation came easy, there was no anxiety about what would happen next, and (of course) everyone had interesting stories about their hometowns. She had learned so much about these people, but she was careful not to reveal anything about her own history. It felt dishonest, but it was for the best.

"Good luck with the tea shop," Aang added.

Chiye's eyes illuminated. "Oh yeah," she said, "I almost forgot. I brought coupons for all of you." She reached into a fold in her dress and pulled out four tickets. "I know it's kind of sudden," she said, blushing slightly, "but Mushi insisted that I pass these out."

Aang grinned broadly, quickly reading the print on the small slip of paper. "Thanks, we'll stop by sometime."

"Yeah," Toph said, "it'll probably be good publicity, too—to have the avatar visit the _Jasmine Dragon_, that is."

"Heh, you're right," Chiye laughed, "now you guys _really_ have to stop by. But I'll see you all later." She started walking away, beginning to feel anxious to get home. "Bye!"

"Hey, wait." Sokka stepped forward, breaking his own silence. "It's too dark to walk back by yourself. Let me go with you."

Chiye shook her head gently. "No, it's alright. I know a shortcut, so it won't take too long to get back." She continued walking toward the door.

"This may not be the lower ring anymore, but there are still dangerous people walking around." Sokka grabbed her hand and turned Chiye around. "Let me take you," he said, staring intently into Chiye's face.

Again, Chiye was caught staring into Sokka's brilliant blue eyes. Maybe it was the exoticness of the color, maybe it was the intensity behind them, but his eyes somehow commanded Chiye's adherence.

"Alright," she said softly, "if you really want." Did he have any idea how persuasive he was?

"Great," he turned back to his friends and waved, "I'll be back later."

"Just make sure you come straight home, Sokka," Katara replied.

"Yeah, Snoozles," Toph grinned, "don't stay out all night!"

"BYE!" Sokka pushed Chiye abruptly out the door, a huge blush spreading across his face.

Chiye laughed once they were out the door. "Your friends are wonderful," she said over her shoulder to the Watertribe warrior.

"Yeah, well, sometimes I think it'd be better if Toph were mute instead of blind," he said ruefully as he looked away to hide his blush.

She grinned. "How did you meet them?" she asked, looking away from Sokka to spare his embarrassment.

"Toph came from a rich family to teach earthbending to Aang. You wouldn't guess, but she's the best earthbender there is."

"And what about Aang?"

"Katara and I were fishing back in the South Pole, and then we found Aang buried in the ice."

Chiye immediately turned to look at Sokka. "What? Under the ice?!"

Sokka brushed the back of his neck embarrassedly. "Well, yeah, that's why the Fire Nation couldn't find him. Apparently, he had survived there for a hundred years."

"That's amazing," Chiye breathed, looking off into the night sky. "It's incredible, really. He outran the Fire Nation by hiding in a place where only fish can survive."

"Well, fish and the Southern Watertribe." Sokka grinned.

"Heh, I guess your right," she smiled back, "the Watertribe really is amazing. It's so different from the Fi—Earth Kingdom." Damn, another close call. This sort of thing had been happening all night, but as far as she knew, they hadn't noticed. She glanced quickly to Sokka to see if he had heard her stutter.

"Yeah, sometimes I start to really miss the South Pole," he said in a faraway voice. He hadn't noticed, but Chiye immediately felt sorry for him. He had obviously been traveling for a long time, and it looked like it was taking a toll on him.

She lightly touched his arm. "Why don't you just go back?" she asked, genuinely sympathizing with him.

He shook his head decidedly. "I can't go back until Aang wins this war. When he does, then I can go back to my tribe with pride. Besides, it won't be long now."

"It won't?"

"No, we found a library in the desert, and it showed us the Fire Nation's weakness. There is a day when all firebending is rendered useless—the day of Black Sun."

Her eyes widened. "A…a solar eclipse?" she breathed.

Sokka looked up at her, his eyebrows raised in surprise. "Yeah, how'd you know?"

Damn, another slip up. She mentally kicked herself for being so careless. "Some—Somebody told me once that firebenders get their power from the sun. I just…I just figured." Sokka had to be ten inches thick not to see her mistakes.

"Huh, we had to go through a lot to get that information. And here you knew it the whole time." Apparently, Sokka really was twenty inches thick. "This your house?"

Chiye looked up. She recognized the clean, white walls and the long, thin windows. "Yes, and looks like everyone's already asleep," she said, pointing to the darkness of the windows. "But listen," she tuned back around and looked at Sokka squarely in the eyes, "you're doing an amazing thing for the avatar, and you're really making your own sacrifices. It's really admirable. I hope that you return to your home soon."

Sokka looked back at her face. There was something more than pity in her eyes, but he couldn't put his finger on it. He shrugged the feeling off—it must have been something personal to her. "Thanks, it means a lot." he smiled slightly, "and we should do this again sometime."

Her face brightened immediately. "Yeah, Toph didn't finish telling me about how she earthbends." She started walking to her front door, "that girl really amazes me—"

Sokka grabbed her hand, stopping her midsentence and causing her to twirl around to face him again. "No," he said, his blue eyes sparkling, "I meant just the two of us, for dinner."

Her heart jolted, beating against her ribcage. Did he just ask her for a date? Her face started burning, and she knew it had just deepened into red. "I…" she was at a loss for words. How could she say no to those eyes? "I…I've got to go." She snapped her hand out of his grasp and flew up the stairs leading to her doorway. Her hand flew to the doorknob, but she forced herself to stop. "Thank you," she turned halfway around, "for the offer." Without another word, she wrenched open the door and slipped inside.

A heavy sigh floated out her lungs as she leaned against the closed doors. Was it really so hard to say no? Was it really so hard to say 'I'm not interested'? Was it really so hard to say 'sorry, I'm involved with someone else'—

Her eyes widened. Did that thought really come from her? She raised her face and looked around the apartment. Today was definitely a strange day. She sighed and walked toward her room. It was too much to think about tonight. She'd deal with it in the morning.

---------------------------------------------------------------

Sokka blinked. Did she just say no? She said thanks, but then again she ran away pretty fast. Were all girls this complicated, or was he just a doofus? He started to walk away. There was no use tying to figure it out tonight. There's no doubt that they would see each other again.

There was a loud _clink_ from the ground as his foot came in contact with something. Sokka bent down and picked it up. It seemed like a long strip of cloth with some weird metal thing on it. He ran his thumb along the cloth. There was something stitched into the fabric, but it was too dark to see what it said.

He shrugged and shoved whatever it was into his pocket. Someone probably lost a bracelet or something. He started walking briskly back to his apartment. He wasn't necessarily rejected, but he was sure that everyone would have a good laugh at him nonetheless.

-------**about five to ten minutes later…don't feel like describing it-----**

Sokka sighed heavily as strode up the steps to his apartment. He could hear everyone shuffling around, probably about to turn the lights off and go to sleep. He pulled his hand out of his pocket and checked his watch. Yeah, it was almost two o'clock in the morning. He shoved his hand back, and felt that strange strip of cloth.

He remembered, he hadn't seen what was stitched on it yet. He pulled it out of his pocket and straightened it out. It probably belonged to Chiye. He had found it around her apartment, after all…

Suddenly, it felt like someone had just punched him hard in the stomach. Like someone had splashed a bucked of cold water on him. He felt sick.

Stitched on that piece of cloth, in big bold letters, was 'Dismissed Fire Nation Soldier'.


End file.
